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OEUVERfo 

N0V20 



1897 



*2'>'ofCo"6''''- 



BROTHERHOOD 



NATURE'S LAW 



BURCHAM HARDING 



NEW YORK 

BURCHAM HARDING 

144 MADISON AVENUE 
1897 

L. 

PRICE 20 CENT 




TWO COPIES RECEIVED 






V\^ 



TO THE READER. 

Copies of this book, in quantities, will be supplied on 
specially moderate terms to facilitate its use in colleges, 
schools and similar institutions, and for general dis- 
tribution. 

The publisher invites cooperation in giving this book 
as wide a circulation as possible, in the belief that human 
happiness depends upon a clear understanding of the 
laws underlying Brotherhood, or right conduct. Corre- 
spondence and suggestions to this end are solicited. 

B.H. 



Copyright, 1897, by Burcham Harding, All rights reserved, in- 
cluding those of translation. This book is copyrighted in foreign 
countries in accordance with the provisions of their laws and of the 
International Copyright Law. 



//-- •^.:?', 



PREFACE. 

The aim of the writer of this treatise has been to 
present simply and clearly the basis of right conduct, 
demonstrating that it is embedded in the heart of nature. 

The moral law is as firmly fixed as the heavens and the 
earth, and cannot change. Until mankind recognizes 
this fact and moulds its actions in accordance therewith, 
suffering and strife will continue. 

It matters not whether violations of the law arise from 
ignorance or wilfulness ; nature will demand retribution. 
Let all, therefore, understand the law, and teach it to 
others, for thus will there spring up happier conditions 
in the world. 

It is becoming more generally recognized that moral 
depravity is the embodiment and outcome of man's 
mental states ; for iniquity may abound, but if it does not 
enter our minds, we are unaffected by it. To remove 
vicious conditions from human society, requires that 
each person be purified mentally. A sound philosophy 
based upon nature's laws is the first necessity to attain 
this mental and moral purification. 

The subject of this treatise precludes the possibility of 
originality ; and such is not claimed. The twelve lessons 
are an elaboration and extension of the ' ' Lotus Circle 
Manual No. I," to the authors of which the writer is 
greatly indebted, and also to other friends for valuable 
suggestions and assistance. 

The chapters deal consecutively with the different 
aspects of the subject, carrying the reader onwards step 
by step. The questions at the end of each chapter are 
intended to facilitate class work. B. H. 

New York, Nov. i, 1897. 



TABIvE OF CONTENTS 



PAGK 

PREJFACB ----»- -3 

CHAPTER I. The One lyife - - - 5 

CHAPTER II. One Ivife in All - -» - 14 

CHAPTER III. Growth - - . - 22 

CHAPTER IV. Cyclic Manifestation - - 30 

CHAPTER V. The I^aw of Action - - 39 

CHAPTER VI. Reincarnation - - - 48 

CHAPTER VII. Progress - - - - 57 

CHAPTER VIII. Duality - - - - 66 

CHAPTER IX. Sevenfold Manifestation - 76 

CHAPTER X. The Connecting Ray - - 85 

CHAPTER XI. Universal Brotherhood - 93 

CHAPTER XII. The Basis of Morals - - loi 



CHAPTER I. 

THK ONK LIFK. 

" Let us build altars to the Blessed Unity which 
holds nature and souls in perfect solution, and 
compels every atom to serve an universal end " — 
Emerson . 

" In him who knows that all spiritual beings are 
the same in kind with the Supreme Spirit, what 
room can there be for delusion of mind, and what 
room for sorrow, when he reflects on the identity 
of spirit."— Fa^wr Veda. 

The One Life pervades all regions of space and 
all forms. It is everywhere, boundless, infinite, 
eternal, the origin of everything visible and 
invisible, of all that has been, is and ever shall 
be. 

The One Life is the great force and energy of 
nature, planning and carrying into execution. It 
is architect, workman and material, the great 
moulder of the universe and its heart. 

The One Life is divided into many ' ' lives, ' ' 
parts of itself. In other words, the one great 
force or energy of nature is sub-divided into in- 
numerable smaller forces, or centres of force, 
each being inseparable from the One Life and 
identical in essence with it. There is no differ- 
ence, save in degree, between the " lives" that 
are found in the minerals, in plants and trees, 
in animal and human bodies, for all are parts of 
the One Life. In one aspect, the division into 
' * lives ' ' is illustrated by the ocean which is 
divisible into drops, each of which is a part of 
and identical in nature with the whole ; or by 
S 



6 BROTHKRHOOD. 

electricity generated in a single current, but 
which is sub- divided in its application, and used 
for many purposes and in various places. 

The One I^ife, eternal and indestructible, may 
be termed the Soul of the universe. Similarly 
each of the " lives " is an indestructible soul, a 
separate and distinct centre of energy, pursuing 
its own course of evolution and accumulating in 
itself the experience gained on its onward march. 
Every point in space is filled with " lives," souls, 
or centres of force and energy, planning and 
moulding visible and invisible nature. 

We see neither the One lyife nor the ' ' lives, ' ' 
but we perceive something of what they do, and 
the garments they put on for a time and then 
discard. The mineral, vegetable, animal and 
human kingdoms, are terms used to classify 
some of the forms assumed temporarily by the 
One lyife. Ivight, heat, magnetism, electricity, 
gases and vapors, are other expressions of the 
One lyife. The varipus objects around us are 
aggregations of "lives'" drawn together by 
mutual attraction, which have put on a clothing 
of matter. These forms endure for a certain 
time and then disintegrate ; the ' ' lives ' ' throw- 
ing off their bonds of matter are then free to seek 
other embodiment. 

The One I^ife corresponds to the manifested 
Deity, superior to which, is the Unmanifested 
Cause of all. Each of the "lives" is thus a 
part of the Deity, God-like and spiritual, carry- 
ing on its evolution in an orderly manner, 
directv^d by divine wisdom. 



THK ONK LIFK. 7 

This unseen One I^ife is ever-active ; from it 
all material and immaterial things proceed. As 
said above, it combines the offices of architect, 
workman and material. A seed grows into a 
plant because the One lyife works within and 
through it, fashioning the various parts accord- 
ing to the plan within the seed, attracting such 
' * lives ' ' as are adapted to each part, and clothing 
them with material particles. 

The One Life ;^ervades everything in nature, 
its operations are universally evident. A scien- 
tist speaks of it as. the law of the conservation of 
energj^, w^hich regulates the changes and trans- 
mutations of force, but does not admit of anni- 
hilation. Metals and rocks exhibit it in the 
force of cohesion binding together their par- 
ticles ; also, by the use of a microscope is revealed 
the regular formation of the crystalline structures 
guided b)^ the ' ' lives. ' ' 

Magnetization of a steel bar causes the extremi- 
ties to assume positive and negative polarities. If 
the bar be cut into any number of pieces, each 
will have a positive and negative end, showing 
that the change produced by magnetization has 
occurred in the " lives," which have been polar- 
ized. Chemical affinit}', and combinations of 
gases in fixed proportions, recorded by chemical 
formulae, display the operations of the One Life. 
The conversion of ice into water, steam, and 
vapor, at certain temperatures, is an exhibition of 
an intelligent force always at work. 

In the vegetable kingdom the One Life directs 
growth, causing seeds to expar.d and attract 



8 BROTHERHOOD. 

"lives " in water, air, sunshine and soil, pro- 
ducing the perfect plant. Conscious intelligence 
is displayed, by roots striking out towards water 
and suitable soil; leaves and shoots, as in cellars, 
turning towards the light, and reaching out to 
grasp supports. Kach seed reproduces its own 
kind, according to the plan or pattern contained 
within itself, again displaying a conscious guid- 
ance. In the animal kingdom the One lyife is 
seen in the automatic actions of the bodily 
organs, heart, lungs, brain, stomach, etc. Each 
organ is an aggregation of " lives ' ' embodied 
in cells whose past experience has fitted them to 
carry on the special function of that organ. 
Upon injury occurring to any part of the body, 
the ' ' lives ' ' exhibit conscious intelligence in 
hastening to its repair. 

The invariable regularity of the laws govern- 
ing the forces of nature contained in and ordained 
by the One lyife, induces people to build steam 
and electric engines, to sow their crops, erect 
edifices and do all the thousand and one things 
of everyday life. 

Every object demonstrates the existence within 
itself of an unseen intelligence, guiding, building 
and controlling it. It is important to distinguish 
in the mind between the outer forms of nature and 
the One Eif e which animates and builds them up. 
The visible stone and metal are distinct from the 
invisible life which binds together the molecules. 
The plant or tree is distinct from the life which 
causes its growth. The animal body with its 
organs is distinct from the life within. Similarly, 



THK ONK I.IFE). 9 

we are not our bodies, but something within, 
which inhabits and uses the body, In the waking 
state the body is the instrument we use for carry- 
ing on operations in this world, but in sleep we 
remove the consciousness from the brain, and the 
body rests until we re- awaken. The functions 
of breathing, digestion, circulation, etc. , are sus- 
tained during sleep by the ' ' lives ' ' embodied in 
the cells of the organs, and not by the guidance 
of our brain. The phenomenon of dreams shows 
that during sleep we possess consciousness, 
although it is not centred in this body, for with 
eyes shut and in a dark room the most vivid 
pictures may present themselves. Under the 
hypnotic influence the bodies of individuals may 
be used to do many things which in a normal 
vState would be refrained from ; again proving 
that the body and the power guiding it are sepa- 
rate and distinct. 

The One Life is the all pervading supreme 
force of nature operating in everything, great and 
small, regulating the movements of the heavenly 
spheres, as well as guiding each blade of grass ; 
drawing up water from the ocean, holding it in 
suspension, as clouds, and returning it as rain to 
nourish the earth. ' ' Jack Frost ' ' is but one of 
the familiar names we give to one of the opera- 
tions of the One Life. He forms fairy pictures on 
the windows on a cold night from the moisture in 
the air of the room. The artist and his material 
are unseen, but the morning shows us his picture. 

A close analogy can be traced between the 
* ' First Cause ' ' of science and the ' ' One Lif fc, ' ' 



lO BROTHKRHOOD. 

as also between the molecules of science and the 
"lives." Every scientist, whether his bias be 
towards a material or a spiritual basis of philo- 
sophy, postulates a "First Cause." He will 
also admit a sub-division of the universe into 
molecules. 

Much light will be thrown upon his philosophy 
by considering the ' ' One I^if e ' ' as the ' ' First 
Cause" in the manifested universe, beyond which 
is the * ' Unknowable ' ' in the unmanifested. 
Further, let him consider the molecule, not as a 
mere metaphysical nonentity, but as a centre of 
force with a well defined purpose and history. 
The energy of the ' ' One Life ' ' working through 
the ' ' lives ' ' causes them to leave their spiritual 
state and gradually descend into material forms 
and after a period leave them again. The mole- 
cules forming the universe are both spiritual and 
material, spiritual in their essence as forces, but 
material in their temporary, outer clothing. The 
' ' First Cause ' ' when viewed from the higher as- 
pect is spiritual, but when looked at from below, 
and seen as clothed in matter, seems to us to be 
material. 

All forms are aggregations of " lives," each of 
the latter being a distinct soul gaining experience 
and storing it. Upon the destruction of any ob- 
ject in nature the " lives " are liberated to return 
to a {Spiritual state, but repass from this into other 
material objects for further progress. 

Evolution is carried on by the ' ' lives ' ' pass- 
ing through all conditions in outer nature and 
accumulating in themselves the experience gained 



THE ONK LIFK. II 

thereby. As all ' ' lives ' ' are parts of the One 
Ivife, it may be asked wh}^ some are found in the 
mineral, and others in the vegetable and animal 
kingdoms ; why some ' ' lives ' ' carr}^ on the func- 
tions of the heart, and others those of the 
stomach, lungs and liver ? This is regulated by 
laws, known as Karma and Reincarnation which 
will be treated in later lessons. 

Stated shortly, each of the ' ' lives " is a separate 
soul following an orderly evolution. The forms 
the}^ assume are determined by their own prior 
experiences ; each being attracted to the condi- 
tions best suited for its further progress, in ac- 
cordance with the experience previously acquired. 

The manifested world exists that the countless 
' ' lives ' ' may have the opportunity for progress. 
They pass from the ph3^sically formless state into 
contact with earth forces and then assume the 
material forms of nature. Originating from the 
One Life, the "lives" descend into matter, 
struggling through and connecting themselves 
with every condition of life and being. At the 
bottom of the valley of matter they identify their- 
selves with Humanity. 

In order to ascend upwards and homewards, 
the ' ' God ' ' in each person has by individual 
merit and effort to reach the final goal. It is 
the martyrdom of self-conscious existence, the 
crucifixion of the impulses of the body, the 
learning the lesson of the One Life. 

" All are parts of one harmonious whole 
Whose body nature is, and God the Soul." 

—Pope. 



12 BROTHERHOOD. 

QTJKSTIONS ON CHAPTER I. 

1. Describe the One Life ; give its attributes. 

2. How do you picture I^ife in nature? 

3. How is the One lyife subdivided ? 

4. Illustrate this subdivision. 

5. What are the ''lives" ? 

6. Name the kingdoms of outer nature. 

7. Explain in what way the " lives " are simi- 
lar and dissimilar. 

8. What is a soul ? 

9. What is the purpose of souls ? 

10. Are the ''lives" visible? 

1 1 . What do we see as regards the ' ' lives ' ' ? 

12. How long do outer forms endure ? 

13. Describe how the One lyife corresponds 
with God. 

14. What relation do the "lives" bear to 
God? 

15. Give evidence of the existence of the One 
lyife in mineral, vegetable and animal kingdoms. 

16. Does man rely upon the regular operations 
of the One lyife ? 

17. What are the two aspects of every object? 

18. Trace the two aspects in each kingdom. 

19. What proofs are there of the two aspects in 
man? 

20. What is "Jack Frost " ? 

21. What is the sphere of operations of the 
One lyife ? 

22. Does science afford any analogy with the 
One Life and "lives" ? 

23. Are molecules both spiritual and physical? 

24. How are natural forms composed ? 



THE ONE LIFE. 13 

25. What office have the "lives" in evolu- 
tion ? 

26. What happens to the "lives" when a 
form is broken up ? 

27. Why do the "lives" assume varied 
forms ? 

28. What determines the form assumed? 

29. For what purpose does the world exist ? 

30. What is the final goal of the ' * lives ' ' ? 

3 1 . How do the ' ' lives ' ' reach their final 
goal? 

32. Explain the Unity of the One Life, and 
its division into * ' lives. ' ' 



" Even though myself unborn, of changeless essence, and the lord 
of all existence, yet in presiding over nature— which is mine— I am 
born but through my own maya, (illusion) the mystic power of self- 
ideation, the eternal thought in the eternal mind. I produce myself 
among creatures, O son of Bharata, whenever there is a decline of 
virtue and an insurrection of vice and injustice in the world ; and 
thus I incarnate from age to age for the preservation of the just, the 
destruction of the wicked, and the establishment of righteousness 
Whoever, O Arjuna, knoweth my divine birth and actions to be even 
so doth not upon quitting his mortal frame enter into another, for he 
entereth, into me. Many who were free from craving, fear, and 
anger, filled with my spirit, and who depended upon me, having 
been purified by the ascetic fire of knowledge, have entered into rny 
b«5ng." — Bhagavad Gita. 



CHAPTER II. 

ONE I.IFE IN ALL. 

" Souls cannot die. They leave a former home, 
And in new bodies dwell, and from them roam. 

Nothing can perish, all things change below, 
For spirits through all forms may come and go." 

—Ov id {translated by Dryden). 

" Then the lord of all creatures said to those 
assembled, together: "You are all greatest and 
not greatest. You are ah possessed of one an- 
other's qualities. All are greatest in their own 
spheres, and all support one another There is 
but one, and I only am that, but accumulated in 
numerous forms." — Anugita. 

The One Life in all is divided into many 
"lives," similar in essence, but which clothe 
themselves in different forms for many purposes. 
The ''lives" inhabiting the rock, gold, daisy, 
oak, spider, horse and man are similar, for all are 
derived from the One force or energy. There is 
One lyife in all. This may be illustrated by 
water, which is found under many disguises, such 
as ice, liquid, vapor and steam, all separable into 
gases. Bach of these serves several purposes ; 
ice for preservation and purification ; water for 
allaying thirst, cooking and cleansing ; vapor for 
the distribution of rain and the shade of clouds ; 
steam for a motive power in thousands of facto- 
ries and vessels ; gases, hydrogen and oxygen in 
combinations have many uses. All these are the 
states and components of the one element water, 
under various conditions and fulfilling many 
purposes. Similarly the * * lives ' ' although iden- 
tical in essence, assume many forms, and bring 
about varied results. 

14 



ONE LIFE IN ALL. 15 

The unity of all * ' lives ' ' is seen in their mu- 
tual helpfulness and dependence, and in their 
adaptation one to another. 

Mutual helpfulness, the basis of the law of 
brotherhood, is taught throughout nature. For 
a seed to grow, the help of all the elements is 
required; the "lives" in water to moisten it, 
the ' ' lives ' ' in sunshine to warm it, the ' ' lives ' ' 
in air to give carbonic acid gas, and the * ' lives ' ' 
in the soil their mineral constituents. These 
' ' lives ' ' as shown in the last lesson are forces or 
energies, progressing along their own lines of 
experience. Unless the * ' lives ' ' in all the ele- 
ments combined to help, growth would not take 
place, for the plant w^ould die if deprived of 
water, soil, air or sunshine. This shows how 
entirely each is dependent upon all, and how 
the ' * lives ' ' work together for the general bene- 
fit, as could only be done, by all being parts of 
the One Life. 

Everything in nature, after being built up bj^ 
the mutual help of the " lives," renders help in 
turn to something else. Mineral * ' lives ' ' pro- 
duce plants and vegetation, which, in turn, serve 
as food for animals and men. Animals are use- 
ful to man not only as food, but in lessening his 
toil and adding to his happiness. Nature in 
every division is a living portrayal of the spirit 
of helpfulness, or the law^ of Brotherhood. 

Insects need the honey hidden in the deepest 
recesses of flowers, and in obtaining it, carry 
pollen from plant to plant, thus giving necessary 
aid in the formation of seeds. Insects help the 



l6 BROTHERHOOD. 

plants and the plants aid the insects. Animals 
and men in breathing, deprive the air of life-giv- 
ing oxygen, exhaling carbonic acid gas ; trees 
and plants take up the carbonic acid gas, and 
build it into their tissues, restoring oxygen to 
the air which is thus purified for inhalation. In- 
visible * ' lives ' ' are everywhere actively engaged 
in their beneficent ofiices, for all are parts of 
One lyife. 

It is a law that whenever help is given, an 
equivalent is received, and the same law applies 
to injuries, for nature is exact in rendering com- 
pensation. A philosopher would define this law 
as ' ' action and re-action are equal and opposite. ' ' 
To make clearer the application of this law to 
our subject, let us analyze vegetable growth. A 
plant draws nourishment from the soil and water, 
also from air and sunshine, each of these ele- 
ments being sacrificed to aid the growing plant. 
How do the elements receive their compensation ? 

The earth, air, sunshine and water absorbed 
by the plant lose their outer forms ; soil and 
water are changed into sap, air and sunshine are 
disintegrated to build the tissues. Compensa- 
tion is received in that the ' ' lives ' ' animating 
these elements are liberated from minerals and 
raised to the vegetable kingdom. It must be re- 
membered that the advance is as great from 
the mineral to vegetable, as from vegetable 
to animal, and animal to man. This is nature's 
method of reward, to sacrifice outer forms by 
breaking them up, that the ' ' lives ' ' animating 
them may be liberated and raised into higher 



ONE LIFE IN ALL. 1 7 

conditions, and thus gain a temporary experi- 
ence in more advanced kingdoms. 

Minerals are disintegrated to aid vegetation, 
and the ' ' lives ' ' enter plant forms. Vegetable 
life is used by animals and the ' ' lives ' ' are car- 
ried upwards. Both plants and animals, when 
used as food by man, enter human beings. In 
each case, by the sacrifice of the form the 
* ' lives ' ' are advanced to higher kingdoms. The 
lion eats the lamb, the strong animals prey upon 
the weak, and it may be enquired how the help- 
fulness of nature is exemplified thereby ? 

Putting aside sentimentality, we see the outer 
body of the lamb sacrificed by being destroyed 
to feed the lion. The lamb as an entity, and 
the ' ' lives ' ' in its body are thus liberated to 
seek other conditions and gain further expe- 
rience. That which seems to be cruelty in na- 
ture, is but her method of carrying on evolution. 
Sooner or later, every outward form is disinte- 
grated ; if it were not so, the world would be 
crystallized, the "lives" imprisoned in their 
present bodies, and all progress virtually cease. 

This is the understanding of the purpose of 
those laws known as ''natural selection," and 
* ' the survival of the fittest. ' ' From a lack of 
comprehension of nature, her ways have been 
deemed cruel, immoral and unjust, but with a 
knowledge of her methods, all is seen to be 
rightly and justly ordered. Some have even 
gone so far as to deny that nature is the handi- 
work of God, and attributed its operations to a 
devil or Satan ! 



l8 BROTHKRHOOD. 

The foregoing teaches a fundamental lesson in 
human brotherhood. All help rendered brings its 
due compensation. " With whatsoever measure 
ye mete, it shall be measured to you again " vSaid 
Jesus ; but the return for charitable deeds must 
be looked for on the spiritual and not on the 
material plane. If our motive in helping a 
needy brother is to receive back an equivalent in 
money or service, such is not a purely brotherly 
transaction, but a matter of barter or business. 
Brotherly actions or real charity consist in vol- 
untarily sacrificing some benefit, comfort or pos- 
session of the personality, without asking or 
expecting any return from the recipient. Ac- 
tions such as these last, according to nature's 
laws, must bring spiritual advancement. By 
voluntary sacrifice of personal desires we liber- 
ate ' ' lives ' ' in our lower nature, and raise 
them to a spiritual state. By following the im- 
pulses of the soul, or God within, its power 
for action and the spiritual will are strengthened 
within us. At the same time sacrifice of lower 
desires weakens their hold upon us. This is the 
crucifixion of the impulses of the body, the les- 
son of the One I^ife in all. 

In the mineral, vegetable and animal king- 
doms, progress is by natural impulse, the forces 
inherent in the One lyife impel an advance. In 
the human kingdom, each individual must vol- 
untarily choose to progress by his own ' ' self- 
induced and self-devised efforts. ' ' Man has the 
option of practicing selfishness or brotherhood ; 
of rejecting the lesson of the One lyife, or of 



ONK LIFE IN ALL, 1 9 

following it ; but to progress lie must sponta- 
neously choose the latter, as human advance 
and happiness are only attainable by the practice 
of mutual helpfulness, the law of the One I^ife. 
In all kingdoms, not only is the help of every 
part necessary to the well being of all, but the 
failure of any to serve, is the direct cause of 
suffering. While all parts of a plant perform 
their functions, a strong, vigorous growth re- 
sults ; but let au}^ part withhold its help, for 
instance, let the roots cease supplying sap, and 
the plant withers and dies. Again, while the 
various organs of the human body operate ^er- 
fectl}^ there is health, strength and vigor, but 
let one organ, say the heart, fail to act, and 
death occurs. In a lesser degree, suffering arises 
whenever bodily action is impaired. 

Throughout nature mutual helpfulness is es- 
sential for growth and progress, and wherever it 
is absent there arises suffering or death. The 
same law^ holds good with humanity ; the prac- 
tice of brotherhood would bring peace, happi- 
ness and contentment, whereas selfishness, which 
is the only sin, causes strife and misery. Hu- 
manity is like a vast machine ; if all the wheels, 
cogs, cranks and parts are in perfect order, it 
works smoothly, but disarrangement of any 
part, throws the whole out of gear. Of the in- 
dividuals composing humanity, each has a duty 
to perform for the general welfare ; failure to 
fulfil this duty brings suffering and trouble upon 
all mankind. 

The One Life in all, teaches the fundamental 



20 BROTHKRHOOD. 

unity of the "lives" and of all beings, and 
their mutual dependence and the necessity for 
practicing helpfulness. I^ower forms are im- 
pelled to sacrifice themselves to help others 
which require their aid, and they thus gain pro- 
gress. Human beings are equally a part of the 
One Life, and are inseparably bound together, 
but must learn of their own free will and accord 
to be brotherly and unselfish. We shall return 
again and again to this world of suffering, 
until selfishness be eradicated from our natures, 
and we learn the lesson of the One I^ife in All, 
and our unity with all mankind, in that they are 
our very self. 

The One I^ife is the great heart of nature. 
By removing the clouds of selfishness, each can 
identify himself with it and beat in unison with 
the whole, and be a powerful factor in dissemi- 
nating the beneficent influence of The One lyife. 

QUESTIONS ON CHAPTKR II. 

1 . Explain how the ' ' lives ' ' are similar and 
yet dissimilar. 

2. How does water illustrate this seeming 
paradox ? 

3. In what manner does Nature teach the 
law of brotherhood? 

4. Illustrate by a growing seed. 

5. When the plant is grown, does it still illus- 
trate the law of brotherhood ? 

6. Is the law of brotherhood practiced in aU 
kingdoms ? 

7. Does justice rule in Nature? 

8. Give a statement of the law. 



ONE LIFE IN ALL. 21 

9. How would a philosopher describe this law? 

10. Show how a growing plant illustrates this 
law of compensation. 

11. What is compensated in the plant? 

12. Describe Nature's method of compensation. 

13. If an animal eats another, is there compen- 
sation ? 

14. Is death certain? 

15. What is death ? 

16. How is death advantageous? 

17. Why has Nature been termed cruel and 
unjust ? 

18. Is Nature the work of God ? 

19. What should be our motive in helping 
others? 

20. What is real charity ? 

21. What is not charity ? 

22. How does voluntary sacrifice bring us 
compensation ? 

23. What in man is helped by right action? 

24. What is the difference between the method 
of progress in the lower, and the human king- 
doms ? 

25. What is the cause of suffering? 

26. Illustrate by plant, and human body. 

27. How can contentment and happiness be 
.-secured ? 

28. What is the great lesson of the One I^ife 
and the ' ' lives ' ' ? 

29. How is progress gained ? 

30. What binds together all mankind ? 

31. How can we become identified with the 
heart of Nature? 



CHAPTER III. 



GROWTH. 



" In the beginning was the Word, and the Word 
was with God, and the Word was God. 

" And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt 
among us.'' — St. John'' s Gospel. 

"Sow kindly acts and thou shalt reap their fruit- 
ion. Inaction in a deed of mercy becomes an 
action in a deadly sin. 

"Help Nature and work on with her: and Nature 
will regard thee as one of her creators and make 
obeisance." — Voice of the Silence. 

Growth is from within outwards. This is so 
because the One lyife, the cause, is within. The 
' ' lives ' ' are impelled by the force within them- 
selves to seek a material expression, which takes 
place by means of growth from the invisible to 
the visible. The ''lives" clothe themselves in 
that form of matter for which they have affinity, 
reproducing the pattern of their previous gar- 
ment, expanding and modeling themselves upon 
it and building matter into it. 

The seed shrivels up and appears to die, but 
the impress within of the One I^ife survives. It 
is this which bears the ideal type of the whole 
plant or tree, and reproduces another at the time 
of growth. The One L^ife contains the ideal 
types or patterns of everything in the universe. 

The laws of growth are fixed and certain. An 
acorn produces an oak, and seeds develop plants 
each after its own kind ; there is no confusion 
in nature. A knowledge of the action of the 
"lives" explains this regularity, for each of 

22 



GROWTH. 23 

these centres of activit}^ is proceeding with its 
evolution according to fixed law. Growth is 
from within, the invisible "lives" assume visi- 
ble shapes ; the finer substance clothes itself in 
grosser matter ; the more rapid vibrations of 
the inner forces become slower as they expand 
outwards. 

We cannot see the One Life or the ' ' lives, ' ' 
but their results are visible : and similarly the 
finer substance and more rapid vibrations are in- 
visible, but we know they must be present. This 
may be illustrated by a wheel rapidly revolving, 
whose spokes are then invisible, but when it 
turns more slowly we see them. The spokes 
were present even when unseen. 

Again, the bass notes of a piano are loud and 
deep, but the sounds grow higher and lighter as 
the treble is reached. The wires of the treble 
being shorter than those of the bass, the vibra- 
tions are more rapid. Were the treble extended 
two or three octaves, a point would be reached 
where the vibrations would be so intense that no 
sound would be perceptible to us. The rapid 
vibrations produce sounds, although they are in- 
audible to our outer ears. 

As a further illustration, a ray of light may be 
resolved into the seven colors of the prismatic 
scale. At either end of these seven colors are 
other scales of colors, invisible to the physical 
eye, but their presence recognized by the effects 
on chemical substances. 

The ancients recognized the reality of invisible 
states and forces, for they spoke of God as the 



24 BROTHERHOOD. 

Container of the Universe, who at times breattied 
forth, bringing all things into existence, and 
then inbreathed them into Himself. They also 
said ' * As above, so below " ; " as in heaven so 
on earth ' ' ; and ' ' there is nothing new under 
the sun." The ideals of everything are in the 
unseen, and take material forms in this world 
periodically in accordance with universal cyclic 
law, under whose guidance all things continually 
revolve from the invisible to the visible and back 
to the invisible. Could growth be watched, we 
should see the cell, the centre of life, divide 
into two cells, and these subdivide until the 
bud bursts the outer coat of the seed, send- 
ing roots down into the earth, and a shoot up- 
wards to the air, building on cell to cell by sub- 
division. Following the method shown in the 
last lesson, each growing plant attracts the help 
of such ' ' lives ' ' as are necessary to its progress, 
utilizing all the elements and their forces. 

The ancients chose the I^otus, the beautiful 
pond lily which blossoms on the surface of the 
water, with its large buds expanding from 
within without, as a favorite symbol of the uni- 
verse. Its seed contains a miniature model of 
the future plant, which was taken as representing 
the hidden ideal type of the universe preceding 
its outward form. This characteristic of the 
lyOtus caused it to be accepted as a symbol of 
man in the universe, explaining the saying, 
" Man, know thyself " ; for each human being 
contains the type of all that exists and he should 
look within for Wisdom. 



GROWTH. 25 

The Lotus plant also symbolizes the three 
planes of man's being. The roots in the mud 
represent this material world in which our bodies 
live. The stalks passing upwards through the 
water, represent the astral plane, whose forms 
are invisible to the physical eye, but whose in- 
fluence is felt through the senses and thoughts. 
The blossoms in air and sunlight represent the 
spiritual plane where the ideal types exist, and 
upon which man reaches his highest possibilities. 
To realize his noblest aspirations, man, like the 
Lotus, must surmount the mud, pass through 
the water and reach the sunlight. 

As growth is from within, so does thought 
precede action. First comes the idea in the 
architect's brain, then the plan is drawn and 
eventually the edifice is erected. A sculptor first 
fashions in his own mind the form he would por- 
tray in marble. The true artist conceives men- 
tally the ideal he wishes to depict on canvas. 
The potter who would fashion in clay a vase or 
living thing, first thinks of that form and then 
moulds the clay with his hands. Thus in every 
case, the idea precedes its outer expression, and 
all growth, even in the mental world, is from 
within. The idea of the Universe, and all the 
beings it contains, is first in the thought of the 
One Life, but this thought has a mighty power 
that moves and shapes the invisible substance of 
Life into forms which become visible. 

Ages ago it w^as taught that the elements con- 
tained forces within themselves, which directed, 
guided and moulded the outer matter. They 



26 BROTHERHOOD. 

considered these forces as possessed of intelli- 
gence in differing degrees, and personified them 
as sentient beings. There were several hosts of 
these forces, each having its special mission to 
direct the progression of a certain part of nature 
on its onward advance. This old teaching has 
had a further rendering in the belief in spirits in 
the elements, the Salamanders in fire, the Un- 
dines in water, the Gnomes in earth and the 
Sylphs in air. We trace the same ideas repro- 
duced in the universal folklore and tales about 
sprites, fairies and other unseen forms. Mythol- 
ogy is full of them. . The foundation for these 
beliefs is found in the ' ' lives ' ' which are the 
hosts of sentient beings, guiding and controlling, 
building up, and destroying to rebuild, the many 
forms of nature. 

Force is unseen ; only its results appear. 
Equally the ' ' lives ' ' are invisible, but they are 
the real agents bringing about growth and 
changes in all directions. 

Materialism has obscured belief in everything 
but the physical world, but our forefathers were 
wiser, knowing that the unseen causes of mate- 
rial things must be sought and could be found. 
They recognized the unity of all nature in its 
ultimate essence. 

The ' ' lives ' ' pass by growth and decay 
through everything in the world, gathering ex- 
perience and storing it in their eternal essence, — 
through all mineral forms to the vegetable, 
thence to animal and man. As the result of 
evolution through the lower kingdoms, man's 



GROWTH. 27 

body contains the types of all that is in this 
world, since it passed through every vegetable 
and animal experience before it assumed human 
shape. All the ' ' lives ' ' are now or will become 
men, either in this cycle of manifestation or in a 
future one. Progress is by growth ever onwards 
and upwards, from the lowest conditions to man, 
the apex of evolution in this world. 

In the lower kingdoms, the " lives " are con- 
trolled by general forces common to whole spe- 
cies. Vegetation displays a universal tendency 
to growth. Animals are guided by instinct and 
desire, which are common to them. When the 
human kingdom is reached, the separate individ- 
uality of each entity is accentuated, and the man 
within feels " I am myself and no one else." 

The results of actions are stored as thoughts, 
which will reappear and give rise to further ac- 
tions. Injuries to others impart thoughts of an- 
ger or revenge ; helpful acts leave loving mem- 
ories. B}^ the law of compensation these thoughts 
will reappear, working from within, outwards, 
inciting to acts of hatred or love. ' ' Blessings 
like curses come home to roost. ' ' 

Growth teaches the importance of checking 
evil thoughts, not allowing them to stay in the 
mind, for they will become seeds for wrongful 
deeds. If evil thoughts are harbored, we are 
always in danger, in spite of conventional re- 
straints. 

''As a man thinketh, so is he," is true. 
Merely pretending to be good, but inwardly nurs- 
ing angry, revengeful, and lustful tendencies, is 



28 BROTHERHOOD. 

but hypocrisy. Purification must begin by a 
strict watch upon the thoughts, for growth is 
from within. 

Actions are but the reflections in matter of our 
thoughts. Our office is to purify the mind by 
eliminating all thoughts not in accord with the 
spirit of helpfulness, the great lesson of the One 
Ivife. 

QUKSTIONS ON CHAPTER III. 

1 . What causes growth ? 

2. How does growth take place ? 

3. Describe the action of the One lyife in pro- 
ducing growth. 

4. Why does an acorn produce an oak? 

5 . What are ideal types ? 

6. Where are they stored ? 

7. Do all " lives " contain ideal types? Give 
reasons. 

8. Why cannot we see the One lyife, or the 
''lives"? 

9. Illustrate by spokes of wheel, music, and 
colors, why some things are invisible to us. 

10. How do invisible things become visible ? 

1 1 . How did the ancients describe God ? 

12. Describe cell growth and that of the plant. 

13. What is a lyOtus ? 

14. What two aspects of man does the I^otus 
symbolize ? 

15. How does it represent man's relation to the 
universe ? 

16. Describe its correspondence with man's 
triple nature. 

17. What precedes action ? Illustrate. 



GROWTH. 29 

18. Does Nature prove that the inner precedes 
the outer ? 

19. How do we know the ancients were not 
materialists ? 

20. What is the foundation of folklore and 
fairy tales ? 

2 1 . Trace the history of the ' ' lives ' ' in their 
evolution through Nature, 

22. What is the apex of evolution for the 
* ' lives ' ' in this world ? 

23. From an evolutionary standpoint, what 
does the human body contain ? 

24. Are the forces similar which act in the 
lower kingdoms, and in the human ? 

25. How are results of actions preserved ? 

26. What results are caused by injuries to 
others ? 

27. What results do helpful actions occasion? 

28. When do these results appear? 

29. Can the re-adjustment be avoided ? 

30. What lesson does growth afford ? 

3 1 . Why is it useless to pretend to be good ? 

32. What thoughts must be eliminated? 

33. What is our best moral guide ? 



CHAPTER IV. 

CYCI.IC MANIFESTATION. 

As to you, Life, I reckon you are the leavings of 
many deaths. 
No doubt I have died myself ten thousand times 
before . "— IValt Whitman. 

" Our deeds still travel with us from afar. And 
what we have been, makes iis what we are." 

— George Eliot. 

" We sleep, but the loom of life never stops, and 
the pattern which was weaving when the sun 
went down is weaving when it comes up to- 
morrow . ' ' — Beecher. 

Growth is from within, proceeding outwards, 
and the activities of the One lyife are perceived 
in a continued repetition of changes from an in- 
visible to a visible state, followed by a return to 
the invisible. The energy in the ' ' lives ' ' causes 
them periodically to seek embodiment in objects 
of nature, bringing about a series of appearances 
and disappearances. This takes place in regular 
cycles, and is one of the most important natural 
laws. 

A cycle means a ring or turning or wheel. The 
* ' lives ' ' leaving their condition of latent activity 
on the invisible plane, gradually produce outer 
forms which having been preserved for longer or 
shorter periods, break up and disappear. In this 
way the ' ' lives ' ' may be said to travel in a ring 
or cycle, descending from the invisible along one 
side of the ring until they reach manifestation 
in matter, and returning upward by the other, to 
their latent state, — the descent and ascent being 
30 



CYCLIC MANIFESTATION. 3 1 

one C3'cle. These revolutions are continually re- 
peated. 

A cycle is not a circle which runs back into 
itself, but may be compared to a screw thread in 
the form of a spiral, which beginning at the 
lower level turns on itself in its upward 
course. 

All the "lives" in the mineral, vegetable, 
animal and human kingdoms are subject to cyclic 
law. This is seen in the continual changes oc- 
curring in the forms of nature ; everything is 
subject to decay ; the rocks wear away, metals 
corrode, animal bodies are ever changing their 
particles. Scientists tell us ' ' that matter is in- 
destructible," but this cannot refer to the outer 
garments, which are subject to constant decay, 
and infers the existence of an inner force or 
energy, indestructible in essence. This inner in- 
destructible element passes through cycles of 
manifestation by clothing itself in temporary 
coverings of matter. In the mineral kingdom 
this can be illustrated by dissolving crystals of 
salt or soda, which will rebecome crystals when 
the water is evaporated. In the vegetable king- 
dom each seed has its cycle of growth, and when 
this is completed, it returns to its seed form. In- 
sects have their cycles, from the Qgg to the larva 
and the winged fly, returning to the egg form. 
Animals have their normal life cycles, and so 
have human beings, for they put on a body, live 
in it for a period and then discard it, but the in- 
destructible element in man lives on, and passes 
through lives in many bodies, as does everything 



32 BROTHERHOOD. 

in nature. Bach recurring embodiment or mani- 
festation adds something to the experience of the 
''lives," and on the principle of the spiral, takes 
them a step higher. 

Cycles govern also in the world of the senses 
and of the desires and thoughts, for impressions 
of whatever kind will return in regular order. 
Nations and races are alike subject to cyclic law, 
for they return again and again with their old 
associates, customs and civilization ; hence it is 
said that ' * history repeats itself. ' ' 

Each ' ' life ' ' has its own special duration for 
embodiment, but passes through many inter- 
mediate shorter cycles. A man' s span of life may 
be seventy years, but that will cover several 
cycles, such as day and night, winter and sum- 
mer, prosperity and adversity, sorrow and hap- 
piness, work and recreation, which will be found 
to recur with great regularity. Our whole life is 
more or less one of routine. 

When this globe took form, the substance com- 
posing it attained a certain and definite rate of 
vibration which will hold through all variations 
in any part of it, until its hour for dissolution 
comes. The duration of a cycle is determined 
by the initial rate of vibration imparted to its 
substance. The solar system and the globe we 
are now on will come to an end when the force 
(One lyife) behind the whole mass of seen and 
unseen matter, has reached its limit of duration 
under cyclic law. " Man himself, considered as 
a spiritual being, is the force which determines 
the length of the cycle of this world. When he 



CYCLIC MANIFKSTATION. 33 

has finished using the globe, he leaves it, taking 
with him the force holding all together." 

Not only the globe but ever3^thing upon it is 
subject to cyclic manifestation. Everywhere is 
seen alternation of activity and rest, as in the 
day and night, summer and winter, sleeping and 
waking, action and reaction. Small cycles make 
up greater ones, and these are parts of still longer 
ones. Thus da^^s and nights make weeks, weeks 
make months, months make years and years make 
centuries. 

Cyclic action is apparent in the ebb and flow of 
tides ; in the currents of the ocean and the air ; 
in the descent of rain and its return to clouds ; in 
the blood pulsed forth from the heart and its re- 
turn ; in the flow of sap from roots to the leaves, 
and its return, and in the regular movements of 
heavenly bodies. 

Cyclic manifestation or a series of appearances 
is the method used by the One lyife to express it- 
self. Man and nature have the day for activity 
and the night for rest. " Work w^hile it is yet 
day, for the night cometh in which no man can 
work. ' ' The One Life causes the ' ' lives ' ' to as- 
sume an active existence in forms to help other 
" lives," and by this method nature supplies all 
wants and lavishly provides for man's comfort. 
Evolution is possible because of this wise provision 
of nature. ' ' Lives ' ' enter certain objects, remain 
for a period, and then the object disintegrates, 
liberating the ' ' lives ' ' to seek other experience. 

Modern science has touched upon this law of 
cyclic manifestation, but has not yet recognized 



34 BROTHEJRHOOD. 

its universal character. Every atom or molecule, 
like one of the "lives," is a soul, eternal in its 
nature, passing through all forms, and storing in 
itself the results gained. An atom, molecule or 
''life," contains and is the representative of its 
own past history, and must acquire experience in 
every condition of each kingdom before advance 
to a higher one be permanently made. 

Man is a more highly evolved and advanced 
atom or "life," subject to cyclic law and is un- 
dergoing experience in human conditions, having 
already completed it in lower kingdoms. Cyclic 
manifestation applied to man is known as reincar- 
nation or rebirth, for the human soul enters a body, 
gains a certain experience therein, throws off the 
body and during a period of rest consolidates the 
life's work, and then returns to rebirth in another 
body in this world, and must reincarnate until 
wisdom is acquired by the practice of the lesson 
of the One Life. 

Reincarnation is cyclic law in operation, for it 
is a return to life in this world, bringing with us 
our old differences of character and temperament, 
which make us all dissimilar and give each a 
force peculiar to himself. This cyclic return gives 
an explanation of life problems and the diver- 
gences in character and surroundings, which can 
be accounted for in no other manner. 

Acts and thoughts create impressions which 
are reproduced when the right conditions are 
provided. This applies to national idiosyncra- 
sies which reappear among people in the mass, 
and also affect individuals. 



CYCI.IC MANIFESTATION. 35 

Every experience leaves an impression ; our 
present conditions are but the result of past acts 
and thoughts, and equall}^ does our conduct now, 
leave tendencies which will mould the future. 

W. O. Judge illustrated the law of impressions 
by sa34ng : " Look at an electric light, and 3^ou 
will find it makes an image on the retina, and 
when 3'ou shut your eye, this bright filament of 
light made by a carbon in an incandescent lamp 
will be seen by you in your eye. If you keep 
your eye closed and watch intently, you will see 
the image come back a certain number of counts, 
it will sta}^ a certain number of counts, it will go 
away in the same length of time and return, 
alwaj^s changing in some respect, but always the 
image of the filament, until at last the time 
comes when it disappears apparently because 
other impressions have rubbed it out or covered 
it over. ' ' 

As there is a cyclic return of impressions on 
the retina, so there are returns of impressions on 
our moral character, for, having done a thing 
once, there is a mental effect left which gives a 
tendency to its repetition. In this way habits 
are formed. 

We are subject to periodical returns of impres- 
sions caused b}^ anger, despondency and the like. 
When these arise, a strong effort should be made 
to create in the mind an opposite feeling of love 
or jo>^ ; then when the cyclic period recurs, the 
old feeling will return linked with the new, 
which will help to counteract the power of the 
former, and will be an excellent method of re- 



36 BROTHERHOOD. 

moving undesirable tendencies. As thought pre- 
cedes action, our efforts to effect a change must 
be applied to the mind wherein the old impres- 
sions are stored. 

A knowledge of this cyclic law gives a potent 
reason for right conduct, as the effect of each 
wTongful act returns in its cycle, and each indi- 
vidual must return to this world in his cycle, 
to answer for all the deeds done in the body. 
This knowledge is a strong incentive for ethical 
conduct, as it accentuates personal responsibility. 

Cyclic manifestation affects the ' ' lives ' ' every- 
where, and they by their united work cement 
everything in one vast brotherhood. All peoples, 
nations and races, as well as the " lives " in the 
seen and unseen worlds, are included. Each 
' ' life ' ' is mounting from lower forms and is 
learning to mould, fashion and impress the mat- 
ter with which it is clothed, so that it may be 
improved for the use of those younger brothers 
who are still less advanced in evolution. 

There is no dead matter anywhere. Every 
atom in a stone contains a " life," unintelligent, 
formless, perhaps, judged from our standpoint, 
but at some period in the far distant future to be 
released and raised to a higher state. 

The ' ' lives ' ' or souls ever retain the experi- 
ence they have acquired, and although records, 
books and buildings ma}' disappear, as souls 
return to this world the}^ bring with them the 
memories of the past and reproduce them. Each 
individual indelibly impresses the record upon 
his own soul, and upon the return of his cycle, 



CYCLIC MANIFESTATION. 37 

assists in carrying civilization to a higher point. 
It is by cyclic manifestation, or the periodical 
return of the " lives " to this world, that every- 
thing is being attuned to the harmony of the 
choir of the One Life, wherein all are joined in 
Nature's great Song of Helpfulness. 

QUESTIONS ON CHAPTKR IV. 

1 . How are the operations of the One Life per- 
ceived ? 

2. What is the result of the action of the 
"lives"? 

3. Is there regularity in the activity of the 
''lives"? 

4. What is a cycle ? 

5. How does a cycle illustrate progress? 

6. Are all " lives " subject to cyclic law? 

7. Illustrate this in Nature. 

8. How does science corroborate cyclic law? 

9. Show how cyclic manifestation is found in 
each kingdom. 

10. How is cyclic law perceived in the realm 
of the senses and, thoughts? 

1 1 . Describe how there are cycles within cy- 
cles. 

12. What determines the end of the world ? 

13. Give illustrations of cycles in our experi- 
ence. 

14. What is the purpose of cyclic manifesta- 
tion ? 

15. How does evolution proceed ? 

16. Is a molecule similar to a soul or " life " ? 

17. How can man be said to correspond with 
a molecule or ' ' life ' ' ? 



38 BROTHKRHOOD. 

1 8. What name is given to man's cyclic mani- 
festations ? 

19. Describe reincarnation. 

20. How does reincarnation explain differing 
conditions at birth ? 

2 1 . Why do acts and thoughts return to us ? 

22. Is chance responsible for our present con- 
ditions ? 

23. Whence arise our characters and tenden- 
cies ? 

24. How are habits formed ? 

25. When impressions of anger and despond- 
ency arise, what should be done ? 

26. Why should the remedy be applied to the 
mind ? 

27. How does a knowledge of cyclic law affect 
right conduct ? 

28. How does it bear upon the practice of 
brotherhood ? 

29. Why is there no dead matter ? 

30. How does cyclic law affect progress ? 



CHAPTER V. 

THK LAW OF ACTION. 

" Men must reap the things they sow, 
Force from force must ever flow." — Shelley. 

" The soul contains the event that shall befall 
it." — Emerson. 

" Nature is that world of substance whose laws 
are laws of cause and effect, and whose events 
transpire, in orderly succession, under those laws." 

— Bushnell. 

The law of action is the same on all planes, 
material, intellectual and spiritual. Every action 
is the result of a previous cause, which itself pro- 
ceeded from one anterior. A scientific state- 
ment of this law is ' ' action and reaction are 
equal and opposite. ' ' Something happens as the 
result of every act ; however small it may be, 
some effect is produced, and this again causes 
something else to be changed. The operation of 
this law is invariable and it pursues its course 
without regard to puny man's wishes or prayers 
for its suspension. 

In the East this law of action is called 
'' Karma y It includes both the cause and its 
effect, for they are inseparable except as to time. 
Every cause has an effect sooner or later, and 
every effect necessitates a previous cause. Kar- 
ma is the law of action. To understand it we 
must bear in mind : 

(a) The One Life, the universal force or 
energy of nature, independent of matter ; 

(b) The " Lives," the individual inteUi- 

39 



40 BROTHKRHOOD. 

gences that animate the various forms of na- 
ture. 

Before the rebirth of a world, the One lyife 
exists homogeneous and undivided, one Being. 
At birth, when a new cycle of activity com- 
mences, the One I^ife divides into Jhe " lyives " 
and begins its work in this world through that 
subdivision. This work is Karma, and is di- 
rected by the law of action. Spirit is separated 
from matter, but retains the link of Karma. 

The "lives" emanated from the One I^ife, 
emanate in their turn new centres of energy 
which begin operating from within without, and 
multiply other minor centres. Everything, from 
the microbe, blade of grass, crystal, crocodile and 
elephant to man, is in its physical formation the 
product of the evolutionary forces of nature 
through a numberless series of transformations. 
The past of each thing is connected with its 
present, and the future will be similarly con- 
nected with the present and past. This contin- 
uity repeats itself before our eyes in all the con- 
ceivable stages of progress. It is seen in plants 
growing from seeds, and in the history of na- 
tions. Karma, an effect-producing cause, or a 
cause engendering an effect, guides and controls 
the ' ' lives ' ' in their transformations through 
nature. Karma is the immutable law joining the 
One Ivif e to the ' ' lives, ' ' spirit to matter, for if 
divorced, chaos would result. 

Karma results in pain so long as the smallest 
atom in the infinite world of harmony is per- 
turbed and readjustment has not taken place. 



THE I.AW OF ACTION. 4I 

The eternal and immutable decree of Karma is 
absolute harmony in the world of matter as in 
that of spirit. Cyclic manifestation, controlled 
by the law of action, prevails, until this harmo- 
nious blending of spirit and matter is attained, 
until mankind practises the lesson ' of mutual 
helpfulness, and follows the law of the One lyife. 

Applied to human relations, Karma is at the 
root of the ethical code ; explaining rewards and 
punishment, and that justice underlies moral and 
material conditions. Harmful deeds to others 
bring us suffering, and kindly actions reap their 
compensation. This is a law of rigid justice 
which each experiences in operation. Karma is 
not fatalism, for our present conditions were 
fixed by ourselves in the past, and now we have 
free will to build the future. 

Actions work in two ways ; inwardly in our- 
selves, and outwardly as affecting others. An 
angry impulse, if uncontrolled, leads us to harm 
another, and accumulates new Karma for our- 
selves, leaving a seed for its return. A kindly 
deed also tends to repetition. What we do once 
is repeated more easily, and finally may become 
a habit and recur automatically. The effect of 
following evil habits becomes apparent in the 
weakening and destruction of the body. Bad 
mental habits, such as laziness, inattention, har- 
boring thoughts of anger, fear and desire, reduce 
the mind to a condition of comparative useless- 
ness, beyond control by its possessor. 

Weakened bodies and minds are not only poor 
instruments for their owners, but by physical 



42 BROTHERHOOD. 

heredity they may be handed down by parents 
who give to their offspring bodies with Hke ten- 
dencies, as seen in cases of scrofula, consump- 
tion, cancer, as well as in hereditary tendencies 
to drunkenness, vice, insanity and lack of men- 
tal powers. 

The outward effect of our actions upon others 
is easily traced, for we always act in company 
with our fellows. They are changed by what we 
do, and they again affect others. Thus the cir- 
cle continually widens, and in this manner we 
help to change every one in the world. A pebble 
thrown into the water causes ripples which move 
every drop in that pond, and they then rebound 
from the margin to meet again. Good and 
evil deeds affect all around us, and by the 
law of cyclic manifestation will return to us 
again. 

The law of action operates in each part of 
man's being, bringing separate results, physical, 
mental and moral on each plane, in accordance 
with his previous activities. ' ' The parable of the 
talents" illustrates this. Health and strength 
will be renewed to us from life to life, if we use 
them aright, in accordance with the lesson of un- 
selfishness taught by the One I^ife. The same 
applies to mental and moral gifts as well as to 
wealth and material things. Wrongful use, or 
devoting these talents to selfish purposes, results 
in our being deprived of them in future lives. 
Talents are retained by right use and taken away 
if applied selfishly. 

The separate operations of Karma on the dif- 



THK IvAW OF ACTION. 43 

ferent planes of being explains diversified envi- 
ronments. We see some rich people with suffer- 
ing bodies and morose dispositions ; others, poor 
but healthy and contented ; and giant intellects 
crippled b}^ environments : these mixed condi- 
tions are due to the law of action operating with 
perfect justice on each plane of man's being. 

Jesus taught this natural law of Karma as the 
basis of his moral code, and without it His 
teachings cannot be understood. In Matt. : VII, 
1 , 2 , we read : ' ' Judge not that ye be not 
judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye 
shall be judged, and with what measure ye mete 
it shall * be measured to you again ' ' ; and in 
verse 12 : " Therefore all things whatsoever ye 
would that man should do to you, do ye even so 
to them for this is the law and the prophets, " and 
verse 18: "A good tree cannot bring forth evil 
fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good 
fruit." In Chap. XII, v. 36 : " But I say unto 
you that every idle word that men shall speak, 
they shall give account thereof in the day of 
judgment." 

These quotations from the sayings of Jesus 
show that His philosophy was based upon a 
great natural law of cause and effect, that we 
shall receive the exact measure we mete to 
others ; that the law stipulates that we must 
first do unto others that which we wish them to 
do to us ; that every good action brings good 
fruit, and vice versa; and lastly, that we are 
responsible for ever 3^ idle word. 

The beautiful teachings of Jesus will remain 



44 BROTHKRHOOD. 

idle words until this great law which underlies 
them is grasped. 

The One I^ife unites humanity inseparably 
together as parts of one Great Self, or one indi- 
vidual, from which bond there is no escape. As 
cyclic law governs in all kingdoms, we return 
to this world again and again by reincarnation 
until the lesson of the One lyife, that all parts 
must cooperate for the general welfare, has been 
learned. Each soul possesses its own past ex- 
perience and seeks embodiment in accord there- 
with. The actions of one life determine the 
conditions and environments of future ones, and 
the law of Karma makes it apparent that as all 
are connected in action now, so were they in the 
past, and will be for succeeding lives. Death of 
the body does not sever connections with others, 
for in the immortal One lyife there is no sepa- 
rateness. Sometimes we are injured by compara- 
tive strangers and think the wrong undeserved ; 
but if we rely upon Karma, we know that noth- 
ing can happen unless it has been merited, even 
if the cause may not be apparent to us. We 
must have injured others in some prior life, 
memories of which are unknown to this brain. 
Karma supersedes chance and accident in the 
vocabulary, and secures all things to the domin- 
ion of law and justice. 

An understanding of Karma explains that say- 
ing of Jesus, ''love your enemies." A person 
cannot be our enemy without cause ; and the 
reason we have enemies is because of injuries 
done to them in the past, whether in this life or 



THK LAW OF ACTION. 45 

a prior one. By the biblical law, **An eye for an 
eye," one whom we have injured must retaliate 
upon us, for " not one jot or one tittle shall pass 
from the law until all be fulfilled. ' ' Jesus ad- 
monished his followers ' ' to love their enemies, ' ' 
and ' * this love should be the fulfilment of the 
law" ; meaning thereby, that instead of waiting 
for our enemies to retaliate upon us, that we 
should "love them," or help them, and thus 
compensate voluntarily for the past injury and 
avoid the necessity for any retaliation. 

By following this admonition of Jesus we 
should be brought into harmony with the spirit 
of helpfulness of the One Life, as well as be 
enabled to avoid injuries which might seriously 
retard our evolution. 

Buddha taught the same doctrine in saying 
' ' hatred ceaseth not by hate, but hatred ceaseth 
by love." 

How quickly the conscience reproves, when a 
wrong is returned by kindness. Shame and re- 
pentance are felt, and a desire arises to recipro- 
cate with kindness, proving that the impulses of 
helpfulness are within us all, however hidden. 
Paul described the Mosaic law (Karma), as the 
" Schoolmaster," which brings us to the law of 
love (Christ). 

The law of action is the law guiding evolution. 
The past and present mould the future. Present 
actions of men will create future conditions of 
the world. Even when this world shall have 
passed away, some other will be born and its life 
will depend upon the life results of this one. 



46 BROTHERHOOD. 

The law of action is universal. It is seen in 
the qualities of all natural objects inherited from 
their parents. Plants may disappear leaving 
only seeds, — as this world may do in the future ; 
but the qualities and forms will be invisibly stored 
in the seeds to guide the growth of their offspring. 
What is known as creation is but the re-appear- 
ance according to cyclic law of an entity which is 
the result of former life and action. Good and 
evil return. "Whatsoever a man soweth that 
shall he also reap. ' ' 

The law of action impresses the great responsi- 
bility we have to our fellows for every act and 
thought, for all are united in the One lyife. Evil 
and suffering will cease when we refrain from 
infringing the law of the One lyife, and recognize 
that the heart of all nature beats in us. 

QUESTIONS ON CHAPTER V. 

1 . Define the law of action. 

2. Where does it operate ? 

3. Can the law of action be set aside by 
prayer ? 

4. How is this law termed in the Hast ? 

5. What is the first constituent of Karma? 

6. What is the second constituent of Karma ? 

7. What exists before the world is reborn ? 

8. Describe the beginning of a cycle of ac- 
tivity. 

9. What directs the activity, and whence comes 
it? 

10. Describe what joins Spirit to matter. 

1 1 . How does evolution proceed ? 

1 2 . Without Karma what would result ? 



THE LAW OF ACTION. 47 

13. What causes pain and suffering in the world? 

14. Can we escape from Karma ? 

15. Why are some born rich and others poor? 

16. Is Karma fatalism ? Give reasons. 

17. How do our actions affect ourselves and 
others ? 

18. Trace effect of an angry impulse, uncurbed 
and curbed. 

19. How are habits formed ? 

20. Trace effect of bad habits on mind and 
body. 

2 1 . What determines that a child shall inherit 
a weak body or mind ? 

22. Illustrate how our actions affect others. 

23. On what planes of man's being does Karma 
operate ? 

24. Why do 3^ou find both good and bad con- 
ditions in the same person ? 

25. How did Jesus teach Karma? 

26. Describe how Reincarnation, in conjunc- 
tion with the law of action, operates upon hu- 
manity. 

27. Wh}^ does death fail to relieve us of the 
result of actions ? 

28. What is the meaning of chance or accident ? 

29. Explain the meaning of Jesus' saying, 
' * Love 3'our enemies. ' ' 

30. What effect would ' ' loving our enemies ' ' 
have upon us ? 

31. How did Buddha teach the same doctrine ? 

32. How did Paul describe Karma and Christ ? 

33. What great lessons does the law of action 
impress upon us ? 



CHAPTER VI. 

RKINCARNATION. 

"Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting ; 

The soul that rises with us, our life's star 
Hath had elsewhere its setting, 

And Cometh from afar. 
Not in entire forgetfulness, 

And not in utter nakedness 
But trailing clouds of glory do we come 

From God who is our hon\&." — Wordsworth. 

"The doctrine of metempsychosis may almost 
claim to be a natural or innate belief in the 
human mind, if we may judge from its wide 
diffusion among the nations of the earth and its 
prevalence throughout the historical ages " 

—Prof. Francis Bowen. 

Closely connected with Karma, the law of ac- 
tion, is Reincarnation, or the rebirth of the same 
individual soul in a series of personalities. These 
latter are like the various costumes or characters 
played by the same actor on successive nights. 
One night he may impersonate Othello, another 
Romeo, and a third, Hamlet, but remains the 
same actor throughout. The permanent individ- 
uality, or soul, recollects the characters previously 
assumed, although the brain of this personality 
ma}^ be ignorant of their details. 

Reincarnation provides the means for Karma 
to express itself ; it is a universal law, as the 
' ' litres ' ' are constantly passing from form to 
form, dying out of some to be reborn into others. 
All nature teaches this lesson of reembodiment, 
for continual change characterizes every visible 
object. Minerals break up through rust and cor- 
rosion, plants and animals are subject to growth 
4S 



REINCARNATION. 49 

and deca3\ As the matter of which these things 
are composed is indestructible, it must be reborn 
in new objects. Continual growth followed by 
decay is nature's method for providing progress 
for the "lives," which pass through alternating 
periods of activity and rest. 

The Life sleeps in the seed, to wake in the 
plant, casting aside the old form of the seed to 
assume that of the plant. It sleeps in the tree 
during winter, to awake in the spring to 
build a new bod}" in the fresh growth of foliage, 
bark and wood. In this new body it dwells dur- 
ing the summer, developing buds for future 
growth. The foliage helps the tree in growing, 
but when the autumn is over it drops off. In 
the same manner these bodies assist man's de- 
velopment, and when one period is ended they 
are cast off, which process is termed death ; but 
it is no more death to us than the falling of 
leaves in autumn is death to the trees. Vegeta- 
tion rests during the winter preparing for the 
succeeding summer's rebirth, and when our 
bodies are laid aside, we too rest before returning 
in new bodies for the growth of another earth 
life. Each season's growth is made from the 
buds formed during the previous summer ; ana- 
logously we are dominated by the mental and 
physical tendencies of previous lives. If the buds 
are poor, the growth will be dwarfed, and if good 
it will result luxuriantly. 

The life of the caterpillar illustrates reincarna- 
tion. Emerging from an Qgg, it grows rapidly 
and then weaves itself into a cocoon, assuming 



50 BROTHERHOOD. 

an entirely different shape ; from this it emerges 
a lovely butterfly. The same centre of life as- 
sumes four distinct changes within a short time, 
egg, caterpillar, chrysalis and butterfly. Man 
also passes through great vicissitudes during 
many lives, and even in the same life changes 
the body several times, as molecules continually 
leave it to be replaced by others. 

Each year the tree trunk is encircled by an- 
other ring, and similarly each earth life adds a 
new experience to the human soul, where it is 
retained eternally. 

There is no difficulty in tracing reembodiment 
as operating in the lower kingdoms, in which 
everything is continually decaying and being re- 
stored to the elements to serve as material for 
new forms ; but there are some who question 
whether it rules among humanity. Does man 
live many times on earth ? This raises the point 
as to what man is ; whether he is the body or 
something within ? 

We have seen that the One lyife is all-pervad- 
ing and divided into many ' ' lives ' ' or souls, 
each of which is pursuing its evolution by as- 
suming and then discarding material forms. The 
essence is identical in mineral, vegetable, animal 
and human beings, as these divisions designate 
the stages of development in physical evolution 
of the " lives " or souls within. 

The ' ' lives ' ' are distinct from the forms which 
they inhabit, as the forces in minerals, plants 
and animals are distinct from their outer gar- 
ments, which endure for a time and are then de- 



RKIXCARNATION", 5 1 

stro3'ed. In the same manner the soul in man is 
distinct from the body it uses for a tifne. The 
real man is not the bod}^, but the soul, and it is 
this latter which is the permanent principle 
tv'hich reincarnates. 

Minerals, plants, and animals, may have no 
recollection of prior conditions, but if evolution 
be true, their indestructible essence must have 
existed many times in various forms. Man may 
not remember his former bodies and their sur- 
roundings, but that is no disproof of previous 
lives. In the soul are stored past memories 
which ma}^ or may not be communicated to this 
brain. Many persons claim to possess recollec- 
tions of the details of former lives, and as greater 
attention is being drawn to reincarnation in this 
Western world, evidence regarding it is accumu- 
lating. 

Can Life die ? Life is a force which may be 
transmuted but not extinguished, for such is a 
rule relating to forces. If the law of ** conser- 
vation of energy ' ' be applied to the soul or the 
"lives," those energies which cause manifesta- 
tion, it is evident they cannot be extinguished, 
however many changes they may pavSS through. 

The soul of man equally with the soul of all 
things ir nature is immortal and indestructible, 
without a beginning and infinite as regards the 
future, but all alike take on many temporary and 
destructible bodies. 

The theor}^ that man has but one life on earth 
fails to give any explanation of the purpose of 
existence ; its adherents admit this, for they 



52 BROTHE^RHOOD. 

suppose the soul to be created out of nothing at 
the birth of the body, and at death it proceeds 
either to a monotonous heaven, or a hell, the very 
existence of which finds few believers. 

The purpose of life is clearly defined in the 
Bible as "Be ye perfect," and the same lesson is 
taught by the evolution of nature which exhibits 
everything progressing to a higher state by the 
cooperation of the ' ' lives " ; it is the lesson 
equally of our experience, for beginning with 
childhood we attend school and college, and later 
acquire knowledge and experience in our occu- 
pations, every one holding some ideal which he 
strives to attain. 

The question arises, do we acquire perfection 
in one life ? If not, reincarnation is a necessity. 
' ' To be perfect even as our Father in Heaven is 
perfect ' ' requires that we possess all knowledge 
and all experience of every age, past and future, 
for nothing can be missing from perfection ; also 
our characters must be purified of all sensuous 
and selfish impulses. Is it possible in one life to 
acquire this ? All will admit that this is impossi- 
ble, for the future is not yet within our reach. 
But some may suggest that this perfection is 
gained after death without return to this world. 
Unfortunately there is no proof of this, and the 
whole analogy of nature contradicts it. Such a 
suggestion deprives this life of any purpose — un- 
less it be that man may sin and so give God an 
excuse for punishing him, — since the perfection 
is to be acquired after this life is over. 

The question arises as to the locality of man's 



REINCARNxlTlON. 53 

previous and future lives ; some may suggest a 
far-off planet as the bourne when the troubles of 
this life are over, and that there is no return to 
this world. 

In stud3'ing the law regulating the lower king- 
doms, we saw that past experience or Karma 
draws back the ' * lives ' ' to embodiment accord- 
ing to the affinities in each one, working along 
the lines of the least resistance. Since man's 
actions are performed in company with others, 
and affect them to a greater or less degree, and as 
many of their effects are not exhausted in this 
present life, a return to meet former friends and 
enemies is necessary for purposes of adjustm.ent. 

If the law of Karma be true, there can be no 
chance or accident, or mere coincidence in daily 
happenings. Meetings with people for the first 
time in this life, in which we confer or receive 
benefits or harm, must result from meetings in 
former lives. Where more likely did we for- 
merly meet, than in this world, the scene of our 
present evolution ? 

Ever}^ force re- acts upon the centre from which 
it originated, and as we are now under the influ- 
ence of reactions in this world, probability points 
to this world as the place of their origin. Paul 
wrote ' ' Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he 
also reap. ' ' We cannot sow wheat in Venus and 
reap it in America ; the present reaping is a crop 
springing from seeds sown in former lives. How 
else can we understand the different conditions of 
birth of each one ? A child attends school for a 
few hours daily, returning to the same class day 



54 BROTHKRHOOD. 

after day until ready for promotion to a more ad- 
vanced one. Man must continue to reincarnate 
upon this earth until all experience has been ac- 
quired which this world can afford. As Karma 
is the schoolmaster, this world is the schoolhouse. 

The law of reincarnation coupled with Karma, 
the doctrine of justice, is the onty explanation of 
the enigmias of life. The same souls now incar- 
nated in bodies — perhaps ourselves — have for in- 
terminable ages been helping to mould the con- 
ditions of the world and make history, and are 
now enjoying or suffering for such past deeds. 
Nothing else can explain the great problem of 
Good and Evil, and reconcile man to the seeming 
injustice of life. When one observes inequali- 
ties of birth, station, intellect and health, the de- 
serving loaded down with hardships, and the 
idle and profligate in the enjoyment of bounties, 
nothing but reliance upon these fixed laws can 
give confidence in the existence of justice as rul- 
ing in the universe. 

Reincarnation is the onh^ explanation of the 
attributes of immortality and divinit}'- in man, 
and is an inestimable comfort in providing a 
means for becoming perfect, even as our Father 
in Heaven (the One Life) is perfect. 

QUESTIONS ON CHAPTER VI. 

1. What is the meaning of reincarnation? 

2. How does an actor illustrate reincarnation ? 

3. What relation does reincarnation bear to 
karma ? 

4. Is the principle of reembodiment universal 
in Nature ? Give reasons. 



REINCARNATION. 55 

5. Describe the process of reincarnation as ap- 
plied to the " lives" ; also to trees. 

6. How does a caterpillar illustrate reincarna- 
tion ? 

7. Explain how the analog}' of Nature points 
to reincarnation in man. 

8. What reincarnates in the lower kingdoms ? 

9. What reincarnates in man ? 

10. Do minerals, plants, and animals, recollect 
former lives ? 

11. How do we know they have existed be- 
fore? 

12. If man has no recollection, why is that no 
disproof of reincarn ation ? 

13. Why do we not recollect details of former 
lives ? 

14. What is lyife ? Can it die ? Why not ? 

15. What does "conservation of energy" 
mean ? 

16. How does the soul in man resembie and 
differ from the souls in the lower kingdoms ? 

17. What is the popular idea of the past and 
future of the soul ? 

18. How does the Bible define the purpose of 
life? 

19. Can this be reached in one life on earth? 
Give reasons. 

20. Why must we reincarnate on this world, 
and not on some other planet ? 

21. 'What governs daily happenings, and the 
benefits or harm we confer or receive ? 

22. How does reincarnation explain different 
conditions ? 



56 BROTHKRHOOD. 

23. What purpose does the world fulfil as re- 
gards mankind ? 

24. Is there any other explanation of the 
enigmas of life ? 

25. What have our souls been doing in the 
past ? 

26. What effect do karma and reincarnation 
have upon our minds ? 

27. How does man become perfect ? 

28. What is perfection? 



We are our own chi\dren. —Pyikag-oras. 

He needed not the spectacles of books to read nature ; he looked 
inwards and found her there. — Dryden. 

Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets. I 
am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. — Matth. V. 

Our human laws are but the copies, more or less imperfect, of the 
eternal laws so far as we can read them, and eiiher succeed and pro- 
mote our welfare, or fail and bring confusion and disaster, according 
as the legislators' insight has detected the true principle, or has been 
distorted by ignorance or selfishness.— i^/'oz/rf.?. 

We can drive a stone upward for a moment into the air, but it is 
yet true that all stones will forever fall ; and whatever instances can 
be quoted of unpunished theft, or of a lie which somebody credited, 
justice must prevail, and it is the privilege of truth to make itself be- 
lieved. Character is this moral order seen through the medium of 
an individual xiQ.\\xxQ.— Emerson. 



CHAPTER VII. 



PROGRESS. 



" Heaven is not reached at a single bound ; 
But we build the ladder by which we rise 
From the lowly earth to the vaulted skies, 
And we mount to its summit, round by round." 
—J. G. Holland. 

" Older than all preached gospels was this un- 
preached, inarticulate, but ineradicable, forever- 
enduring gospel: work, and therein have well- 
being. Man, son of earth and of heaven, lies there 
not, in the innermost heart of thee, a spirit of 
active method, a force for work, that burns like a 
painfully mouldering fire, giving thee no rest till 
thou unfold it, till thou write it down in benefi- 
cent facts around thee? " — T. Carlyle. 

Since all ' ' lives ' ' are sparks of the One lyife, 
however small and dim, they possess the char- 
acteristics of that Life with its possibilities of 
unfoldment and progress in evolution. ' ' Every- 
thing evinces a progressive march towards a 
higher life. There is design in the action of 
seemingly blindest forces. ' ' The laws of ' ' natu- 
ral selection ' ' and ' ' survival of the fittest ' ' 
which seem so cruel are working towards the 
grand end of progress. 

The object of existence is for progressive de- 
velopment, which flows as a necessary result 
from the presence and activity of the One Life, 
for it is cooperative in its methods. Every race of 
mankind has had a dim recognition of this coop- 
eration or spirit of helpfulness in nature, the 
loftiest attribute of divinity ; and it has led many 
to offer prayers and entreaties for help to higher 
powers under various symbols and names. 
57 



5^ BROTHE^RHOOD. 

Former lessons have dealt with the relation 
that all outer things bear to the divine in nature, 
to God, to the One lyife, — that in the soul all 
are inseparabl}^ connected as parts of it. Ter- 
restrial existence is for the soul's experience and 
not as many think, to pamper the body by 
gratification of its selfish impulses. 

The soul assumes a bod}^ at birth in exact 
accord with its own past, and after accomplish- 
ing its life's work, withdraws from that instru- 
ment which returns to the elements ; but the soul 
lives on. Prayers and entreaties to God to in- 
fringe His own laws in favor of individual sup- 
pliants are manifestly useless. 

We should not despise any life because it 
seems small, for all is divine and there is no 
limit to what it may become. Minerals are 
transformed into beautiful flowers. From a 
tiny egg emerges a caterpillar that occupies its 
life in eating, then wrapping itself in a pro- 
tecting coat for a sleep, awakens a lovely butter- 
fly. A thing of earth becomes a denizen of the 
air. 

Progress is continual. The end of one cycle 
marks the beginning for another. During the 
existence of worlds, the great /lear^ of nature, 
the One lyife, is ever pulsing out its helpful 
force under the immutable law which is Eternal 
Motion, cyclic and spiral, and therefore progress- 
ive. The bud proceeds from the seed, and the 
flower from the bud, developing form, color and 
odor, and then these die down and disappear, 
leaving but another seed for the coming season. 



PROGRESS. 59 

The chambered nautilUvS is a beautiful illustra- 
tion of the same truth. The spiral shell shows 
how 3'ear by year it built upon itself newer and 
larger mansions as the old were outgrown. The 
door of the old growth was closed behind, but 
the shell was carried with it as the embodiment 
of its past history, a type of all growth. 

Souls or * ' lives ' ' accumulate past experiences, 
but are ever constructing new coverings to suit 
growing needs. When they reached the human 
stage, the bodies of the animal kingdom no 
longer served for their progress. The old ani- 
mal house was outgrown, its experience had 
been already gained, and therefore the door of 
the animal kingdom was closed for reincarna- 
tion of human souls. For all the great march is 
onward, for the One Life is ever actively forcing 
forward everything by the help that each life is 
obliged to render its brother life. For this vital 
force directs growth, makes the seed germi- 
nate and forms trunk and branches, which in 
their turn produce other trees. This is the 
never-dying breath of life. 

Progress is everywhere, ruling in worlds and 
universes as well as in all the beings they con- 
tain, down to the smallest atoms. 

This lesson of progress is quite in accord 
with every-day experience. The child attends 
school to acquire education, and spends the 
greater part of his after life in gaining dex- 
terity and additional experience in some chosen 
vocation, by consciously striving tow^ard some 
ideal. Nature has set out her landmarks very 



6o BROTHKRHOOD. 

clearly, the mineral, vegetable, animal and hu- 
man kingdoms representing progressive stages in 
development. There are a definite number of 
' ' lives " or souls in each kingdom, and although 
they may temporarily ascend to a higher one, 
they return home upon the disintegration of th e 
form in which they were embodied. 

Each department of nature is an initiation over 
the one below, advance from one to another oc- 
cupying many millions of years. After a long 
period of activity, the world passes through an 
equal period of rest, as sleeping follows the wak- 
ing state. When the world awakens from one of 
these states of rest, the aspiring " lives" of each 
kingdom have advanced a step in evolution. 
Those which in the previous cjcIq occupied 
mineral forms are now advanced to the vegetable, 
and the former vegetable ' ' lives ' ' are now ani- 
mating animals, and the animal become vehicles 
for use by human souls. As the Kabala ex- 
presses this orderly progression, ' ' The stone be- 
comes a plant, the plant an animal, the animal a 
man and the man a God ; " — or, as the Hindus 
sa3^, ' ' God sleeps in the stone, breathes in the 
plant, moves in the animal and wakes to con- 
sciousness in the man." 

Progress in nature follows a fixed law, the law 
of the One I^ife. We get help by giving help. 
This rule applies to all stages of evolution in each 
kingdom of nature. In a former lesson it was 
shown how plants grow and fashion themselves 
by raising the minerals to the vegetable kingdom, 
and ever3^where the higher ' ' lives ' ' build new 



PROGRESS. 6 1 

tenements b}^ using those in a less progressed state 
and thus raise them. The bee aids the plant by 
distributing pollen, and receives aid in return. 
Information imparted to another sinks more 
deeply into our own mind ; — in the act of giving 
we arrive at a fuller knowledge. Advance in 
evolution is made by the higher ' ' lives ' ' de- 
scending into lower kingdoms, by embodying 
themselves in, or taking on coverings of the lower, 
and thus infusing them with their own more ad- 
vanced development. Advance takes place by 
the higher lifting up the lower, for the latter 
cannot raise themselves ; this is illustrated by the 
seed breaking up minerals and incorporating 
them in the plant. Without this help the 
minerals would not be able to fashion the plant. 
Tliis great law of nature is the basis of the 
dogmas of the vicarious atonement and the cruci- 
fixion. The immortal soul (the Christ) enters 
human bodies to save them, that is to raise them 
to a divine state. This operation goes on eter- 
nally, as higher entities, out of their compassion, 
embody themselves among the lower, crucifying 
themselves in the act, to assist the less progressed 
and become the vicarious sacrifice for the sins of 
th-e lower. The souls thus voluntarily crucified 
by the trials of daily life are rewarded by the 
wisdom gained in the experiences of this life. It 
is a universal law that help is gained in propor- 
tion as it is given. 

The human soul acquired its individuality prior 
to becoming the present humanity. It has the 
task of conquering the instincts and desires of the 



62 BROTHKRHOOD. 

animal body in which it dwells, by the use of the 
thinking and reasoning faculties of the mind. 
This conquest must be achieved by each one 
through the conscious use of will power. 

Man has the endowment of free will, able to 
follow selfish impulses of the animal body, or to 
listen to the guidance of the soul. The former 
are selfish, bringing suffering in their train, for 
injury to others carries exact retribution ; we reap 
as we sow. 

lyife by life the experience gained through 
suffering brings self-control, enabling us to 
refrain when tempted. Through suffering the 
will grows stronger, character is gained and there 
is a gradual extinction of selfish desire and 
loosening of its hold over the mind. 

Repentance and forgiveness are explained by 
the law of Karma and form an important step in 
progress. The commission of sins is followed by 
suffering as the penalty ; but suffering gradually 
leads to repentance, a ' ' turning away from ' ' the 
repetition of the offence, as the desire to sin 
loosens its hold upon the mind. When thorough 
repentance is reached, that we sin no more, resti- 
tution for past offences can be made, and forgive- 
ness is obtained. " With whatsoever measure ye 
mete, it shall be measured to you again." Wh.i'. 
we sin, suffering will be ours. Only by rep.i, 
tance or turning away from our faults can finuJ 
forgiveness be reached. For instance, a person 
may be rich, but use his wealth selfishly to gratify 
bodily lusts or personal ambition, and thus form 
in his mind a strong attachment to riches for the 



PROGRESS. 63 

means of selfish gratification they offer. This 
wrongful use may cause such a person to be re- 
born many times into a state of poverty wherein 
the mind, bj^ the sufferings endured, may grad- 
ually be purged of the selfish attachment to 
wealth. When the mind is purified of these self- 
ish tendencies, a state of repentance is reached, 
and riches, with the power of helping others 
which accompanies them, may be restored to the 
repentant sinner. We must cease committing in- 
juries and hating others, and by helping them set 
right old scores and thus gain forgiveness, rec- 
ollecting that the lesson of the One I^ife is that 
all must render help, whereas injury and hatred 
are impediments to man's progression. We ad- 
vance by helping other and less advanced entities, 
for the law of Brotherhood holds good wherever 
the One Life is in operation. The more pro- 
gressed the state of evolution, the greater the 
power possessed by the entity to render help to 
others. Man in his highest development thus 
becomes Godlike, a powerful agent for the dissem- 
ination of the beneficent forces of the Qne Life. 
He carries help to all forms in the lower king- 
doms, raising and advancing them, and in greater 
measure is able to assist his fellow man by evok- 
mg the soul within him. Thus is salvation ob- 
tained from the almost irresistible dictates of 
animal propensities and from the woe and misery 
they entail. 

Progress in its highest attainment is reached 
by perfect purity of thought, word and deed, 
represented by entire unselfishness ; for thus we 



64 BROTHERHOOD. 

learn to live in harmony with the Absolute Unity, 
that ever pulsating heart that beats throughout 
every form of the One I^ife. 

QUESTIONS ON CHAPTER VII. 

1 . How do the One lyif e and the ' ' lives ' ' ex- 
hibit progress ? 

2. How do " natural selection " and the ** sur- 
vival of the fittest ' ' operate toward progress ? 

3. What proof is there that all races have rec- 
ognized Nature's cooperative action? 

4. Is the popular conception of God derived 
from the One I^ife ? Give reasons. 

5. Trace the history of a soul during one in- 
carnation. 

6. Why are selfish prayers useless ? 

7. Why should we refrain from despising life 
in minor objects? 

8. Has progress any limit ? Give reasons. 

9. What part in progress have destruction and 
decay ? 

10. How does the nautilus illustrate progress ? 

11. What part has the soul in progress ? 

12. Why cannot human souls reincarnate in 
animals ? 

13. What is the ultimate cause of progress? 
Explain how this operates. 

14. How do our daily lives teach progress ? 

15. How is progress depicted in the kingdoms 
of nature ? 

16. Are the "lives" attached to the separate 
kingdoms ? 

17. When do "lives" progress to a higher 
kingdom ? 



PROGRKSS. 65 

18. Can the "lives" ascend to a higher king- 
dom in the present cycle ? 

19. Describe the progression of the "lives" 
to a higher kingdom. 

20. Define the law underlying progress. 

21. Is this law universally applicable ? 

22. How do plants illustrate the law of help- 
fulness ? 

23. In what manner does teaching another 
help the teacher ? 

24. What is necessary for "lives" to advance 
to a higher kingdom ? 

25. Can "lives" raise themselves to higher 
kingdoms ? 

26. How does this law explain the dogmas of 
vicarious atonement and the crucifixion ? 

27. How are "lives" compensated for raising 
lower ones ? 

28. When did the human soul become individ- 
ualized ? 

29. What is the task of the soul in human 
bodies ? 

30. Upon what does the soul act to accomplish 
this task ? 

31. What does free will enable man to do ? 

32. What is the purpose of suffering ? 

33. Explain repentance and forgiveness. 

34. Describe the effect of selfishness upon us 
and how repentance is reached. 

35. How can man become an active part of the 
One Life ? 

36. What is man's highest goal ? 

37. What are essential to progress ? 



CHAPTER VIII. 



DUALITY 



" Polarity, or action and reaction, we meet in 
every part of nature An inevitable dual- 
ism bisects nature Whilst the world is 

dual, so is every one of its parts." — Emerson. 

" All actions performed other than as sacrifice 

unto God make the actor bound by action 

He who seeks nothing and nothing rejects, being 
free from the influence of the ' pairs of opposites,' 
without trouble he is released from the bonds forged 
by action." — Bhagavar.-Gita. 

The whole of nature is pervaded b}' duality. 
The One I^ife has visible and invisible aspects ; 
its transitory forms and their permanent founda- 
tions. Every cycle is made up of two opposites, 
as activity and rest, cause and effect, sleeping 
and waking, life and death, ebb and flow, pleas- 
ure and pain, loving and hating. A ' ' pair of 
opposites ' ' consists of two aspects of one thing, 
which arise in our consciousness as the result of 
the operations of mind. 

In the present stage of evolution, man is per- 
fecting the mental faculties. Through percep- 
tion he is enabled to compare and contrast things 
with their opposites, eliminate errors and cor- 
rect his judgments, until ultimateh' he reaches 
knowledge. The dual aspect of all things is a 
stage of mental growth through which all pass, 
for it affords experience of both sides. Without 
perception of pain, we cannot value pleasure ; 
experience of cold is necessar}' to appreciate what 
heafis; a person born blind cannot judge be- 
66 



DUALITY. 67 

tween light and darkness, having no basis for 
comparison. 

As attachment of the mind to, or desire for 
either opposite is lost, we become equal minded 
in pleasure and pain, and true knowledge is ac- 
quired of the Unitj^ underl3'ing seeming duality. 

In nature's workshop, duality rules. Take 
plant life ; there the single cell divides, build- 
ing another on itself, growth being the continued 
repetition of this dual activity. When the ex- 
panding bud within the seed bursts the outer 
coat, it sends a root downward into the earth, 
and a stalk upward into the air and sunlight. 
Bach of these opposites is necessary for the plant 
to perfect itself. The purpose of the dual ex- 
pression is experience and growth for each mani- 
festation of life. The plant needs roots for the 
help they render in the darkness of the earth, 
and also leaves and branches for gaining assist- 
ance from air and sunshine. While stillness and 
warmth help the oak tree in growing, tempest 
and cold make its fibre strong. 

Throughout manifested nature can be traced 
the positive and negative principles, each neces- 
sary and complementary to the other. There is 
the thought and its embodiment, the ideal in the 
sculptor's brain and its materialization in marble. 
Wherever objective forms are found, there is 
duality ; for instance, the tree and the life with- 
in ; the animal and its vital principle ; the human 
body and its soul. Ever5^thing v/hich has an 
outer shape in this world, has its unseen basis in 
the One lyife. 



68 BROTHKRHOOD. 

Man possesses two natures, which we may 
name higher and lower, and which give rise to a 
dual set of motives. The lower, including the 
body and its instincts, furnishes the vehicle for 
operations in this world and for gathering expe- 
rience ; but the helpful influence of the higher 
nature is necessary for this experience to become 
real progress. 

Animal instincts must be controlled, and trained 
to conform to the higher will, enabling the body 
to serve as a useful instrument for conveying to 
others the beneficent help of the One lyife. In 
such case all the ' ' lives ' ' of which the lower 
nature is composed will be purified and elevated. 

To comprehend good and evil has been a long- 
standing problem. They are a ' ' pair of oppo- 
sites " explained by the duality of nature. 
Neither of them has a permanent existence, but 
each represents the impression made upon us by 
our surroundings. These impressions may seem 
good or evil, pleasant or unpleasant for the mo- 
ment, but their effect constantly varies as our 
mental attitude changes. When Karma is real- 
ized as a fact — that everything happens as the re- 
sult of our own former deeds — we no longer try to 
evade the inevitable, but face the lessons of life 
and learn contentment therein. Former evils 
will then cease impressing us as such, unpleasant 
events may occur, but we may acquire the power 
of being unmoved by them, and they will not af- 
fect us prejudicially. In past incarnations good 
and evil actions have attached us to others, for 
hatred as well as love is a cause of attachment ; 



DUALITY. 69 

now we meet with the results in the mixed good 
and evil of life. We maj^ stop the recurrence of 
the evil in the future, b}' refraining now from re- 
turning evil with evil, or hatred with hatred, 
and learning to practise the difficult inj unction 
given by Jesus of ' ' loving our enemies ' ' and 
helping those who persecute and injure us. The 
power to succeed in this, requires us to be 
" equal minded toward friend and foe," and in 
such case evil ceases to be unpleasant, for we 
have risen to a mental state where good and 
evil are treated philosophically. It is sometimes 
necessary to appear harsh, and exercise restraint 
over the actions of others for their own good, as 
a mother must restrain a child. This restraint 
seems at the time to be evil, but it is prompted 
by love. Good and evil are but changing inci- 
dents in a life of change. 

Taking the One Life as our ideal and striving 
to become a co-worker with it, we see that it is 
the great beneficent providence, every part ren- 
dering help to other parts. By assisting those 
around us, exercising true charity without any 
desire for personal reward, the motive becomes 
purified, the heart bursts the bonds of the selfish 
mind, and we rise above the effects of good and 
evil events. Every such effort causes veils to 
fall away from the mind, and the soul gains 
power to guide us, and we become more power- 
ful agents for the One Life to carry out its pur- 
pose of helping everything. Then the great 
heart of nature vibrates in us, having awakened a 
sympathetic chord which unites us to the whole. 



yo BROTHERHOOD. 

The dual set of motives in us arises from the 
impulses of the body and soul affecting the mind. 
The bod}'- with its senses, vitality and instincts 
impels to selfishness, for its existence as a body 
is limited to the present life, without past or 
future ; its tendencies are to gain satisfaction of 
its desires, lusts and cravings. The body would 
be deprived of some indulgence were we to prac- 
tise charity, or give something to another. The 
soul or spiritual nature instigates to unselfish 
living ; it is part of the One Life, eternal and 
infinite, conscious that the same life pervades 
everything, and it perceives no separateness or 
distinction between itself and others. The im- 
pulse of the soul is to be charitable and helpful, 
brotherly, loving and compassionate toward all 
beings. Its view is not narrowed by the horizon 
of this present life, but widened to include the 
ties of all past lives. 

A person may be termed atheist, agnostic or 
pagan, and may deny the existence of any God 
or spiritual realm, yet his thoughts and actions 
as far as they are compassionate and brotherly 
are prompted by the soul, even if he profess to be 
unconscious of its existence. 

Compassion and kindness are innate in the vast 
majority. In the face of some gveat calamity or 
danger, this innate kindness springs to the sur- 
face and asserts itself spontaneously, forming the 
closest of bonds and causing frantic efforts to be 
made to render assistance. At times we permit 
selfish instincts to cloud the nobler ones of the 
soul, and fear creeps in to paralyze us. Fear is 



DUALITY. 71 

the result of ignorance, the effect of the animal 
consciousness upon the brain mind, which com- 
pares and contrasts perceptions, but lacks confi- 
dence in its conclusions. The result of fear is 
seen in the case of a man falling into deep water. 
If not practised in swimming, the mind paralyzes 
his efforts with fear, and he sinks. The prac- 
tised swimmer has confidence, dominates the 
lower mind and swims ashore. I^ikewise an ani- 
mal, following its instincts, swims naturally the 
first time it enters the water. 

The uncontrolled mind, dominated by selfish 
motives, suggests doubts, worries and anxieties 
and other forms of fear, which cause us to suffer 
in anticipation of events which may never occur. 
Fear does not exist in the soul, for the latter 
knows without reasoning and possesses the 
courage of its convictions. The soul know^s it- 
self to be part of the One Life, is invulnerable 
and indestructible. In the w^ords of the 
Bhagavad Gita, Chapter II. , "I myself never was 
not, nor thou, nor all the princes of the earth ; 
nor shall we ever hereafter cease to be. ' ' 

While the soul inhabits a body, evil cannot be 
avoided, for the limitations of material surround- 
ings are the causes of that which seems evil. 
The only good is in Unity, but the mind influ- 
enced by the pairs of opposites becomes attached 
to the dual results of actions, favorable or un- 
favorable, and is enslaved. The soul must burst 
these bonds and be free, in order to reach true 
happiness. The mind subject to bodily senses is 
unable to discriminate clearly ; hence the lack of 



72 BROTHKRHOOD. 

reliability of human judgments. Not being free 
ourselves from the liability to err, how can we 
legitimately condemn others ? In all human re- 
lations this thought should lead to the greatest 
toleration towards others' faults. We are not 
acquainted with the causes which led to the com- 
mission of that which we condemn ; hence, how- 
ever strongly we may disapprove of the offense, 
the offender should be free from condemnation 
by us. The law of the One I^ife is just, and will 
see that justice is meted out. Judgments and 
condemnations of others are beyond our rightful 
jurisdiction ; hence we have no right to take life 
for life. "Vengeance is mine, I will repay," 
saith the I^ord. 

Present materialistic civilization appeals mainly 
to the senses, holding in highest esteem ostenta- 
tious living and lavish expenditure. Through 
the senses our minds become slaves to the pairs 
of opposites — pleasure and pain, good and evil, 
' ' which come and go and are brief and change- 
able." Present conditions directly conduce to 
suffering, unrest and disturbance, but are teach- 
ing the lesson of control in the mind over these 
selfish impulses. When the emptiness of per- 
sonal ambition, vanity, place and power is ac- 
knowledged, they will be replaced by less selfish 
motives, for the results of the former will be lost 
when the body dies, leaving naught but a legacy 
of future suffering. 

The wise man endeavors to reach the spot in 
his own heart where he ceases to be subject to 
the disturbing influence of this duality. It is 



DUALITY. 73 

in us all. This is the meaning of the terms 
"finding the Christ," and "the kingdom of 
Heaven is within," and is treated at length in 
" The Voice of the Silence." 

These temporary bodies are but envelopes for 
the soul ; bodily impulses must be restrained by 
understanding the nature and laws of the soul. 
The Bhagavad Gita, the Bible of the Hindus, 
says of the soul. Chap. II. : " It is eternal, uni- 
versal, permanent, immovable ; it is invisible, in- 
conceivable, and unalterable." 

Dwelling in thought upon the soul's attributes, 
and studying the teachings of Jesus in their in- 
ner meaning, or the " Bhagavad Gita," or other 
sacred books, brings a realization of the divine 
part of ourselves. This knowledge strengthens 
in the hour of temptation, and gives us power to 
control the passions ; for the soul is part of the 
One Life, receiving help from other souls, un- 
less w^e choose to close the doors. The most 
effective manner of gaining help in our struggles 
is to give help, for thus are the doors of help 
opened and we become co-workers with the One 
Life. 

QUESTIONS ON CHAPTER VIII. 

1 . How is duality in nature perceived ? 

2. Give illustrations of duality. 

3. What causes " pairs of opposites " ? 

4. What is man now perfecting ? 

5. Explain how the mind operates. 

6. How is true knowledge acquired ? 

7. Illustrate duality in nature. 

8. Illustrate duality in mental spheres. 



74 BROTHKRHOOD. 

9. Illustrate duality in man. 

10. Describe the lower and higher natures in 
man. 

1 1 . What is the rightful relation between the 
personality and the soul ? 

1 2 . What are good and evil ? 

13. From what do they arise? 

14. Why do good and evil interchange? 

15. What effect has the knowledge of the law 
of Karma upon us? 

16. Can we change evil into good ? Describe. 

17. Can we evade good and evil happenings ? 

18. Can we avoid the recurrence of evil in 
the future ? Describe. 

19. How do we form future attachments to 
others by hatred ? 

20. How can these attachments be overcome ? 

2 1 . What is the lesson of the One lyif e ? 

22. How can motives be purified ? 

23. How do the two sets of motives arise in us ? 

24. Why are the motives of the body selfish ? 

25. Why are the motives of the soul unself- 
ish ? 

26. Whence spring compassion and love in an 
agnostic or atheist ? 

27. Are compassion and kindness innate in 
humanity ? Illustrate. 

28. What is the effect of fear upon the mind? 

29. Of what is it the result ? 

30. Illustrate the result of fear upon man and 
animals. 

31. What suggests doubts, worries and anxie- 
ties respecting events which never happen ? 



DUALITY. 75 

32. How can anxiety be avoided ? 

33. What is the cause of evil ? 

34. How can happiness be reached ? 

35. Wh}^ should we not condemn others? 

36. Why should we be tolerant of others' 
faults ? 

37. Explain wh}^ criminals cannot escape their 
just deserts. 

38. What is the effect of our present condi- 
tions ? 

39. What does * ' finding the Christ ' ' mean ? 

40. How can we gain faith in the existence of 
the soul ? 



" Nature never did betray 
The heart that loved her ; 't is her privilege, 
Through all the years of this our life, to lead 
From joy to joy : for she can so inform 
The mind that is within us, so impress 
With quietness and beauty, and so feed 
With lofty thoughts, that neither evil tongues, 
Rash judgments, nor the sneers of selfish men. 
Nor greetings where no kindness is, nor all 
The dreary intercourse of daily life 
Shall e'er prevail against us." — Wordsworth. 

" Still somehow the round 

Is spiral, and the races' feet have found 

The path rise under them which they have trod " 

— IVm. Dean Howells. 
" Thou Shalt not let thy senses make a playground of thy mind." 
" Thou shalt not separate thy being from Being, and the rest, but 
merge the Ocean in the drop, the drop within the Ocean." 

i,' So shalt thou be in full accord with all that lives ; bear love to 
men as though they were thy brother pupils, disciples of one 
Teacher, the sons of one sweet Mother." 

"Compassion speaks and saith ; Can there be bliss when all that 
lives must suffer? Shalt thou be saved and hear the whole world 
cry ? " — Voice of the Silence. 



CHAPTER IX. 

SKVKNFOLD MANIFESTATION. 

" These appearances indicate the fact that the 
universe is represented in every one of its particles. 
Everything in nature contains all the powers of 
nature. ' ' — Etnerso7i. 

"A careful analysis, however, reduces these in- 
finite potencies and potentialities to seven great 
divisions, which in man are classed as Principles, 
and in the cosmos as Hierarchies." 

— J. A. Anderson, M.D. 

The One lyife pulses through infinite space, 
manifesting itself on seven planes of being. 
These planes are not separated from each other in 
space, but each of them is everywhere ; they in- 
terpenetrate and interblend. This interblending 
may be illustrated by a bowl ^of water in which 
are placed coloring matter, salt and other in- 
gredients, and heat applied to it. The water, 
color, salt and heat are separate in themselves, 
but interblend with each other, and each is found 
permeating the others. 

The seven different planes or conditions in 
which the One lyife manifests itself are called the 
sevenfold manifestation. They have a regular 
order and sequence, although interblended. 

Considered as rates of vibration, these planes 
begin with the most rapid and descend step by 
step through seven gradations to the slowest. -If 
applied to matter, the planes commence with the 
most ethereal substance, passing through seven 
stages, each more material than the preceding, 
to the most dense — that of this earth. 

That matter of different densities will inter- 
76 



SEVENFOLD MANIFESTATION. 77 

penetrate is illustrated b}^ the every-da3^ experi- 
ence of electricians. The same cable will convey 
several messages simultaneously from New York 
to Europe and vice versa, provided currents of 
electricity of varying strengths be employed. 
The different currents pass and repass through 
each other without interference. 

The recent revelations with the X-rays show 
that matter can pass through other matter. 
Photographs of a human body have been taken 
through clothing, a plate of glass, and a piece of 
wood several inches in thickness. Respecting 
this, Nikola Tesla, the great electrician, writes : 
* * I am getting more and more convinced that we 
have to deal with a stream of particles which 
strike the sensitive plate with great velocities. ' ' 
In this case, particles of the human frame must 
have penetrated the various intervening obstacles. 

There are around us seven globes of matter 
of different densities, and man possesses seven 
natures or principles corresponding with these 
globes, enabling him to act upon them all. As 
the seed contains the whole plant from the roots 
to the blossom in a latent state, so does the One 
Life contain its sevenfold manifestation, itself 
being upon the highest plane. Upon proceeding 
to pass from the invisible state to assume a form, 
the lives pass downward through the seven planes 
until the lowest, that of physical manifestation, 
is reached. 

The sevenfold manifestation characterizes 
everj'thing around us. A ray of light divides 
into the seven colors of the prismatic scale, the 



78 



BROTHERHOOD. 



same order being invariable, from the violet, the 
most rapid vibration, by a gradually descending 
scale to the red. What better illustration of this 
can there be than the rainbow ? Sound divides 
into seven tones, and the piano into a series of 
octaves, the difference between treble and bass 
being a lessening of the rates of vibration. 
Chemical elements form into groups of seven 
according to their atomic weights. Man has 
seven senses, two not yet fully developed. Seven 
is the dominating number, as witnessed in the 
phases of the moon, and periods of seven in 
diseases and gestation. Seven rules in the for- 
mation of the body, which has seven skins, etc. 
The seven days of the week and the seven sacred 
planets are connected with this fact. 

The One lyife is always the same in essence, 
its seven diverse appearances depending upon the 
vehicle it uses. If a lamp be covered with 
seven globes, varying in density, the radiation of 
light will vary with the opaqueness of the globes. 

The One lyife acting in man assumes seven dif- 
ferent expressions. Four of these are temporary, 
and three are permanent. The four lower may 
be written around a square as follows : 
Desire. 



Physical life. 



Astral mould 
or form body. 



Body. 



SEVENFOLD MANIFESTATION. 79 

The lowest and most dense is the physical 
body, the outer garment. The body in itself 
is senseless, for when sleeping it can neither 
see nor hear. It has sense organs, but these 
cannot act unless there is something within to 
use them. 

This inner bod}^ acting directly upon the physi- 
cal organs, is called the astral body, being of 
the same size and shape as the physical, but of 
finer matter, and visible only to the astral eyes. 
The astral body precedes the physical, the latter 
being built into it cell for cell. It varies very little 
during life, but acts as a pattern and model to 
preserve the shape of the physical body during 
the constant change of its particles. The senses 
of sight, hearing, smelling, etc., do not pertain 
to the physical body, but to the astral, which 
uses the outer organs as mechanical instruments 
to establish a means of communication between 
external nature and itself. Both physical and 
astral bodies are built of little ' 'lives. ' ' 

The next principle is physical life or vitality, 
pervading every part of the body and energizing 
the organs, using the astral body as its vehicle 
or channel. 

The last principle of this quaternary is ' ' de- 
sire," the force which makes us want things for 
ourselves, the bavSis of selfishness. Desire per- 
meates the entire lower man, " and like the astral 
body may be added to or diminished, made weak 
or increased in strength, debased or purified." 
"These foui; lower principles are common to 
man and animals, as well as to the vegetable 



8o BROTHERHOOD. 

kingdom, though in the last but faintly devel- 
oped. At one period in evolution no further 
than the material principles had been developed ; 
the three higher of mind, soul and spirit were 
but latent. Up to this point man and animal 
were equal, for the brute in us is made of the 
passions and the astral body. ' ' 

The three higher principles, or triad, may be 
represented by a triangle : 

Ray of the One Life. 




Self conscious 
Knower. Z \ Thinker. 

The Knower or perceiver conveys intelligence 
to us without thinking or reasoning. It is that 
feeling of conviction which assures us wnth 
certainty. It is the faculty of spiritual discern- 
ment. 

The next principle is the Self-conscious 
Thinker, wherein the One Life perceives itself as 
Thinker. The Ray of the One I^ife acts through 
both these principles, through the one as 
Knower and the other as Thinker, and in the 
latter recognizes itself as such and is therefore 
called self-conscious. 

The connecting ray between triangle and 
square is the thinking brain-mind, the subject of 
our next lesson. 

This is the sevenfold manifestation of man's 



SEVENFOLD MANIFESTATION. 8 1 

nature, wherein all the principles interblend with 
each other, and permeate the whole body and 
beyond it for a space. The astral or nerve body 
is in every part of the physical form ; the 
vitality, desire, mind, soul and spirit also inter- 
penetrate each other. 

The chain of seven globes of matter correspond 
with man's principles, and equally interblend, 
enabling the Ego or Thinker within us to act at 
different times on these several planes, by chang- 
ing its consciousness from one to another. While 
the Ego acts through the physical body, it is 
conscious in this world, and recognizes its sur- 
roundings here ; but when the body sleeps, it 
functions on the astral or other globe and recog- 
nizes its surroundings there, losing consciousness 
of this world for the time. Upon awakening, a 
return of consciousness is made to this world. 
Dreams are recollections brought from other 
planes and impressed upon the physical brain 
with sufficient force to be remembered after 
awakening. Even in waking hours the Ego 
passes to other planes, as when deeply absorbed 
in thought or work, or very strongly carried 
away by some desire, we forget present sur- 
roundings for the time. Death is very similar 
to vsleep, for the Ego passes in consciousness 
from the physical body and loses touch with its 
surroundings in this world ; but in the one case 
it returns upon awakening, and in the other it 
does not return to that body, but will come back 
in another upon reincarnation. 

The sevenfold manifestation of man gives a 



82 BROTHERHOOD. 

clear analysis of his nature. The One Life is 
universal in its character, the Infinite Deity. 
The next principle is the universal soul endowed 
with spiritual discernment ; and the third, the 
individual soul in each human being. This in- 
dividual soul, derived directly from the One Life, 
is in everyone, persisting from life to life and 
storing the experience gained. It is the reincar- 
nating Ego, which has been compared to a silken 
thread upon which are strung the pearls of ex- 
perience of each life. This is the real man who 
inhabits the body. 

The four lower principles are but instruments 
used by the real man to enable him to come into 
contact with nature and his surroundings in this 
world, in order to know himself. Whenever an. 
act is performed, the four lower principles trans- 
mute the thought of the Ego into the action. 
The thought becomes a desire, and is transmitted 
through the nerves or astral body, vitalized by 
the life principle, to the muscles, and the act is 
performed. If any one of these principles were 
deficient, the connection between the mental and 
phj^sical planes would be severed, and an idiot 
would result. The square represents the mortal 
and impermanent part of man, which he uses for 
the one earth life and then discards. To live for 
the body and its desires alone is a waste of time, 
for at death the result of our efforts is lost. The 
body is the low^est, least important and most 
transitor}^ of these principles. Deprived of the 
man within, the organs of the body are sense- 
less and useless. 



SKVKNFOIvD MANIFESTATION. 83 

The sevenfold manifestation of the One Life 
shows how everything in nature is intimately 
associated, and each part is necessary to bind 
together and assist the whole. The great heart 
of the universe is one, but manifests in different 
manners. 

QUESTIONS ON CHAPTER IX. 

1. Describe how the One Life manifests on 
seven different planes. 

2 . How do you picture these planes ? 

3. Are the planes separate in space ? 

4. Can seven things fill the same space at the 
same time ? Explain by bowl of water. 

5. What is the basis of the order of the .seven 
planes ? 

6. Explain these planes as related to (i) vi- 
bration ; (2 J matter. 

7. Which plane is the most dense? 

8. How does electricity demonstrate that mat- 
ter can interpenetrate matter ? Does the X- 
raj^ show this ? 

9. How does man correspond with the seven 
planes of the globe ? 

10. How does a seed illustrate the seven 
planes ? 

11. Name other examples of sevenfold mani- 
festation. 

12. Upon what do the seven different mani- 
festations depend ? 

13. How many principles in man are tempo- 
rary ? Name them. What is a principle ? 

14. How do we perceive that the physical 
body in itself is "senseless ? 



84 BROTHERHOOD. 

15. Describe the astral body. 

16. Of what is the astral body composed? 

17. What purposes does the astral body 
serve ? 

18. How can you show that the senses are in 
the astral body ? 

19. What is the nature of the next principle? 

20. What is the fourth principle ? De- 
scribe it. 

21. What principles has the animal in com- 
mon with man ? 

22. Name the three higher principles, the 
triad. 

23. How do these differ from the four lower 
principles ? 

24. Describe the " Knower. " 

25. Name the next principle. Describe. 

26. What is the connection between triangle 
and square ? 

27. Describe how the seven principles are 
interblended. 

28. What enables man to change his state of 
consciousness ? Illustrate. 

29. What are dreams ? 

30. Analyze the triangle, showing relation of 
the reincarnating Ego to the One I^ife. 

3 1 . What purpose do the four lower principles 
(the square) serve ? Analyze them. 

32. What causes idiocy ? 

33. Why is it a mistake to live for bodily 
desires ? 

34. What moral lesson does the sevenfold 
manifestation afford ? 



CHAPTER X. 

THE CONNECTING RAY. 

" Life is but a means unto an end— that end, 
Beginning, mean, and end of all things— God. 
We live in deeds, not years; in thoughts, not 

breaths ; 
In feelings, not in figures on a dial. 
We should count time bj- heart throbs. He most 

lives 
Who thinks most, feels the noblest, acts the best." 

— Bailey. 

" For mind is like a mirror : it gathers dust while 
it reflects. It needs the gentle breezes of Soul- 
Wisdom to brush away the dust of our illusions. 
Seek, O Beginner, to blend thy Mind and Soul." 

— Voice of the Silence. 

At each incarnation of a human being, the 
self-conscious Thinker emanates a ray from itself 
which joins the real, immortal man to the per- 
sonality of that incarnation, the soul to its 
body ; this connecting ray is our thinking mind. 
The ray is an emanation from, or a reflection of, 
the higher mind into the lower vehicle, forming 
a bridge by w^hich the human, thinking person- 
ality can mount upward and join the higher. 
The path is found by our aspiring to follow the 
law of the divine man. 

The four lower principles of man's constitu- 
tion were developed by evolution, forming the 
body of man with its desires and passions, with 
a brain more highly developed than that of any 
other animal. The personality, composed of the 
four lower principles, breaks up at death, and is 
reconstructed at rebirth, this being repeated 
from life to life until the personality is raised to 
85 



86 BROTHKRHOOD. 

the plane of the self-conscious Thinker through 
the illumination of the ray, and a permanent, 
immortal entity is formed. 

The connecting ray between Spirit and per- 
sonality was supplied by individual Souls who 
incarnated a ray from themselves into the mind- 
less men. These Souls had gained self -conscious- 
ness ages ago in other worlds and systems of 
worlds, in previous evolutionary periods, which 
were completed before the solar system existed. 

The manner in which this light of mind was 
given to the mindless men can be illustrated 
by one candle lighting many. The expanded 
brain of the mindless beings was like a candle 
fully formed and with wick prepared, but not 
yet lighted. As from one lighted candle numer- 
ous unlighted ones can be set aflame, so the illu- 
minating Souls, called the "Sons of Wisdom," 
lit up the animal man by enlightening his mind, 
which he was unable to do without this assist- 
ance. The ' ' Sons of Wisdom ' ' are the Elder 
Brothers of every family of men on any globe, 
and have derived the light from others who reach 
back and back in endless procession without 
beginning or end. It is thus by receiving 
Their light that each race is prepared for final 
initiation. 

The reincarnating Ego, or individual Soul, is im- 
mortal, accumulating and carrying the results of 
experience from life to life. This Ego assumes 
two aspects upon entering a body ; there is the 
intuitional faculty which knows, and the reason- 
ing, which works through the brain-mind. Thi§ 



THK CONNKCTING RAY. 87 

reasoning faculty is a superior organism which 
the Thinker uses to reach its conclusions, and 
creates man's superiority to animals, for the lat- 
ter act from automatic or instinctual impulses. 

Desire, the predominant characteristic of ani- 
mals, is nearest to the reasoning aspect of the 
Ego, and usually brings a strong influence to bear 
upon it ; whereas the intuitional has affinity for 
spiritual things. If the tendencies are wholly 
intellectual, the individual tends downward ; for 
intellect is cold, heartless and selfish unless 
lit up by the spiritual flame. With every effort 
of will toward purification and unity with this 
inner Self -God, one of the ties binding it to the 
lower breaks, and the spiritual entity of man is 
drawn higher until eventually he is absorbed into 
the highest beam of the Parent Sun. 

In the brain-mind is the battle-field of the con- 
tending forces, for man must by his own self- 
conscious effort lift himself mentally out of the 
controlling influence of worldly temptations. In 
the mind alone can St. George slay the Dragon, 
for it is here that the fight must take place. 
This connecting ray is our self, which exercises 
the power of choice to follow either the selfish 
animal passions, or the guidance of the divine by 
slaying the Dragon. When we follow the higher 
intuition, we may be said to have reached the end 
of the rainbow, and to have found that spiritual 
wisdom which is symbolized by the pot of gold. 
The ' ' War in Heaven ' ' allegorizes the contest 
between the two opposing forces in man. This 
war will last till the inner and divine adjusts 



88 BROTHKRHOOD. 

his outer terrestrial self to his own spiritual 
nature. Till then the fierce and dark passions 
will be at continual feud with their master, the 
Divine Man. But the animal will be tamed one 
day, because its nature will be changed, and har- 
mony will reign once more. 

The connecting ray is our thinking mind, 
wherein we are usually centred. It is the tie 
between the square and the triangle, subject to 
the impulses of both. Everyone is conscious of 
being tempted by the one, yet feels the higher 
trying to induce him not to yield. It is not 
always easy to obey the higher, on account of 
mental habits ; but the hard struggle must be 
persisted in, for man must save himself from 
falling. He is a complex creature in whom re- 
side these two forces, so diihcult to be harmo- 
nized. The hivStory of a life is the story of the 
swaying influences of the animal and the God. 
The evidence of the animal nature is written at 
times on the features. On some is the cunning 
of the fox, never directly approaching its ends, 
but adopting indirect, underhand methods ; in 
others, cruelty, disregard of the rights of their 
fellows, obstinacy, treachery or greed. On the 
other hand, there are the noble and self-sacrific- 
ing natures which make their owners but a little 
lower than the angels, before whom one instinct- 
ively bows. Even the humblest and dullest has 
in some dark corner of himself all these godlike 
possibilities. 

Between these tw^o natures, man himself, the 
connecting ray, stands. He is the monarch for 



THE CONNECTING RAY. 89 

the present life, with absolute power of choice. 
Like the man at the wheel, he can steer what- 
ever course he may choose, being guided by the 
God within, or allowing the animal to hold the 
rudder ; but if the latter, shipwreck is sure. No 
one can absolutely prevent him from choosing 
the wrong course, for there is no compulsion to 
make a man good unless he desires it in his own 
heart. When one recognizes that he is steering 
his own ship and has control of his destiny, the 
sense of personal responsibility seizes upon his 
mind, and no longer can he drift about, the sport 
of every breeze of the passions. He is the con- 
necting ray and has learned that he must become 
a part of the God within himself, for in no other 
manner can he hope to avoid the dangerous 
shoals and hidden rocks surrounding him on his 
life journe}^ 

The "Fall of Man" related in the Bible, in 
one aspect allegorizes the entrance of the con- 
necting ray into humanity. ' ' Falls ' ' occur 
continually in all kingdoms. They represent 
the descent of the higher ' * lives ' ' or entities 
from a more advanced kingdom to a lower, that 
by embodying themselves in the lower the latter 
may be imbued with the essence of the higher, 
and made to progress. This is an important 
factor in evolution, for as Drummond says, " No 
entity can raise itself to a higher condition, but 
requires help from above. ' ' The soul ' ' fell ' ' by 
connecting itself with the four lower principles, 
incarnating in mindless man by giving him its 
reflection, the faculty of reason. By the fall, 



go BROTHERHOOD. 

Adam ate of the fruit of the ' ' tree of the knowl- 
edge of good and evil." At this juncture, Adam 
obtained a mind, the power to compare and 
contrast opposites, such as good and evil, pleasure 
and pain. The triangle, the Christos, "fell" 
by connecting itself with Adam (the quaternary), 
giving to the animal a mind, the connecting ray. 
"As in Adam all die, so in Christ shall all be 
made alive." 

This symbology is carried further by the ser- 
pent deceiving Eve. In ancient writings, the 
serpent stood for the divine soul ; it is the ' * Ser- 
pent of Wisdom." When the soul first endows 
man with mind, the latter, not yet being under 
control, acts as a deceiver. The animal, under the 
impulse of instinct, satisfies hunger, thirst and 
other bodily appetites, and ceases when they are 
appeased. Man under the guidance of an un- 
controlled mind allows the faculty of imagina- 
tion to lead him on to gluttony, drunkenness and 
prostitution of bodily functions. Instead of 
ceasing when the natural appetite is appeased, 
he associates pleasure with eating and drinking, 
and gives way to selfish indulgences. 

Whenever we permit selfish passions to domi- 
nate, the law 6i Karma brings retribution in the 
form of troubles and trials, — not to punish, but 
to teach us to control our desires. The will is 
strengthened if we forcibly lift ourselves out of 
difficulties and learn self-control, and will event- 
ually endow us with the power to refuse to suc- 
cumb, however subtle the temptations w^hich 
assail us. 



THK CONNECTING RAY. 9 1 

The One Life finds its highest material mani- 
festation in humanit}'. The experience gained 
by the "lives" in lower kingdoms fits them 
to enter humanity, when the consciousness of 
the animal gradually merges into the self-con- 
sciousness of the human being. 

Man's destiny in this world is to find perfec- 
tion ; the connecting ray must not be broken 
until this is attained. Aspiration to become like 
the divine soul, and the practice of unselfish 
actions, are the best means of arriving at this 
perfect harmony with the One Life. 

QUKvSTlONS ON CHAPTER X. 

1 . Whence comes the connecting ray ? 

2. Describe what the connecting ray is, and 
its purpose. 

3. How can we strengthen the connecting ray 
in ourselves ? 

4. How did evolution prepare for the reception 
of the connecting ray ? 

5. Will the connecting ray always be neces- 
sary ? 

6. Who supplied the connecting ray ? Whence 
came They? 

7. Illustrate the illumination qf the mindless 
men. 

8. Who are the Elder Brothers ? 

9. Describe the two aspects of the reincarnat- 
ing Ego. 

10. How can a person be intellectual and not 
spiritual ? 

11. How does free will in man affect the connec- 
ting ray ? Describe the two courses open to man. 



92 BROTHERHOOD. 

12. What is the meaning of the allegory of 
St. George and the Dragon ? 

13. Give the meaning of the ''War in 
Heaven." 

14. What two influences affect the connecting 
ray ? 

15. How can we summarize the history of a 
life? 

16. In the waking state, where is our con- 
sciousness usually centred ? 

17. Where is the consciousness in the sleeping 
state ? 

18. Has man free will to act ? 

19. Is it limited? 

20. What does the recognition of free will con- 
fer upon us ? 

2 1 . What must be our aspiration ? 

22. Give the meaning of the " Fall of Man." 

23. Are there " falls " in other kingdoms? 

24. What do ' ' falls ' ' effect ? Describe the 
process. 

25. What did man obtain at the " Fall " ? 

26. What ''fell"? 

27. How does the mind act as the "Serpent 
of deceit"? 

28. Does Karma punish ? How does it teach 
us? 

29. Describe the evolution from animal to per- 
fected man. 

30. What is man's destiny ? 

31. How is it to be attained? 



CHAPTER XI. 

UNIVKRSAI, BROTHERHOOD. 

" Bear ve one another's burdens, and so fulfil the 
law of Christ. "-5/'. Paul. 

" The evolution of a highly destined society must 
be moral ; it must run in the grooves of the celestial 
wheels. It must be catholic in aims. What is 
moral? .... Hear the definition which Kant 
gives ot moral conduct : ' Act always so that the 
immediate motive of thy will may become a univer- 
sal rule for all intelligent beings.' " — Emerson. 

Study of the One Life and its constituent 
"lives' ' makes it clear that universal brotherhood 
is both a law and a fact in nature ; for every- 
thing in this physical w^orld exists by reason of 
the mutual helpfulness that all parts render to 
one another. 

In the lower kingdoms, this cooperation is com- 
pulsory, for the moulding force from a higher 
kingdom impels the ' ' lives ' ' to render assist- 
ance. It is this cooperation which holds together 
the forms for a period, and then relaxes, allow- 
ing the * ' lives ' ' to break up their prisons and 
seek progress in new directions. It governs also 
among human beings, but with this difference : 
that the individual is not compelled, but must 
voluntarily determine to w^ork in accord with this 
natural law. 

Brotherhood is both a law and a fact in nature, 
taught by every object, and cannot be ignored 
without dire consequences. All ' * lives ' ' belong 
to one great brotherhood, as sparks of the One 
Life or as drops of the mighty ocean of life. 
93 



94 brothe:rhood. 

Their cooperation is exemplified throughout na- 
ture' s workshops, whether we examine a mineral, 
plant or animal. This spirit of helpfulness has 
been personified in the God who is ever loving 
his children, — the beneficent providence assist- 
ing all things to reach a higher state. 

The scientist recognizes this idea, terming it 
the " Great Cause," the basis of evolution, from 
which all progress proceeds. This spirit of help- 
fulness has long been worshipped as an attribute 
of a personal God, to whom prayers are offered as 
a means of procuring material assistance. But 
instead of asking God to help us gratuitously, we 
should endeavor by our actions to deserve the as- 
sistance, making our prayers take a practical 
form. We should cooperate with nature, becom- 
ing agents for the divine law to carry help to 
others ; for the law is just and will compensate 
us with the exact measure of our deserts. 
Prayer is the exercise of will in asking or de- 
manding that the beneficent forces of the One 
lyife act on this plane. We have latent within 
us the faculties of imagination and will, which if 
developed sufficiently would give the power to 
remove mountains. ' ' Whatsoever j^e shall ask 
in My name that will I do " ; — " If ye shall ask 
anything in My name, I will do it." 

Real prayer is in the nature of a command by 
those purified in thought and will. They have 
acquired the power by meditation and the abne- 
gation of self. 

The practice of universal brotherhood w^ould 
be the realization of the highest condition of 



\ 



UNIVERSAI, BROTHIi:RHOOD. 95 

harmony and happiness on earth, for it would be 
the application of the divine law of compassion, 
the loftiest attribute of the Deity. Were its pre- 
cepts realized in our surroundings, social, na- 
tional and political, suffering would cease and 
discontent, strife and misery disappear. Sin can I 
be summed up as the breach of the law of \ 
brotherhood, and suffering and misery are the j 
penalties to readjust the sin and to teach us to \ 
avoid its repetition. If selfishness were sup- 
pressed and brotherly relations prevailed, happi- 
ness, peace and contentment would leign uni- 
versally. 

The progress of the * ' lives ' ' depends upon 
help being freel^'- given and received, for all are 
necessary to one another ; and in a similar manner 
we help or hinder those around us by our course 
of living. Selfish actions affect all, directly or in- 
directly. A person commits a fraud upon a bank, 
and in consequence others are treated as crim- 
inals until identified as trustworthy ; and the 
presence of a few dishonest people in our midst 
necessitates the imposition of general restrictions. 
Equally do honest and reliable persons imbue 
their surroundings with an atmosphere of peace 
and security which is helpful as an example to 
their neighbors and introduces freedom into our 
relations. 

" The unit is subservient to the whole," is an 
abstract expression of brotherhood. Following 
this rule we see that individual ambitions and 
desires must be subservient to those of society. 
The city must recognize the superior authority 



96 BROTHKRHOOD. 

of the state, and the state, although autonomous 
as to local concerns, that of the federal govern- 
ment. Equally must the interests of nations be 
subservient to those of humanit}^ as a whole. 

Although universal brotherhood is recognized 
by many as the ideal state, yet unfortunately in 
practice the opposite is often ignorantly striven 
for. One endeavors to oust his neighbor by ex- 
cessive competition ; cities consider their own 
affairs paramount, striving for them at the ex- 
pense of others ; nations contend ambitiously 
for self-aggrandizement, sometimes building men- 
of-war and massing armies for the purpose of 
seizing the property of other nations. All these 
take place without a thought being given to the 
terrible readjustment awaiting such breaches of 
nature's law, 

Instead of brotherhood, the practice of selfish- 
ness mainly rules, and we need not wonder there- 
fore that the penalty of suffering is so widely 
experienced in all quarters of the globe. Fam- 
ines, earthquakes, wars and rumors of wars, 
murders, suicides, shipwrecks, and general unrest 
and anxiety are but some of the methods em- 
ployed by nature to bring about a readjustment 
of the breaches of the law of brotherhood. 

Only by working for the good of all and not 
for ourselves alone, can we secure the best results 
even for ourselves ; for only thus do we work in 
harmony with the One lyife of which we are a 
part. 

It must not be forgotten that each person is a 
part of the race, and it is imperative that we 



UNIVERSAL BROTHERHOOD. 97 

include ourselves in arranging the duties and aims 
of life. Duty has been defined as * * that which 
is due by us to humanity. ' ' Our duties are first 
to those immediately around us, the circle being 
enlarged as opportunity^ offers. 

We cannot avoid working for ourselves ; the 
difference between brotherhood and selfishness 
being that, in the one case, we work for our- 
selves as mcluded in humanity, and in the other 
we work for ourselves as separate from humanity. 

We are all bound together by invisible threads, 
so that the action of each affects others. This 
union is true even on the physical plane, although 
the latter seems to exhibit separateness ; for the 
' ' lives ' ' composing our bodies are constantly 
being interchanged. The skin, hair and tissues 
change so continually that in a few years every 
part of the body is renewed. The " lives " thus 
liberated pass to other people, carrying the im- 
press we have given them. Their vibrations are 
set to base or virtuous living by the impressions 
of our thoughts and actions, and tend to elevate 
or degrade in accordance with these impressions. 
Vicious living contaminates the common air, but 
upright actions make virtue easier for all, be- 
cause of the binding together even on this low- 
est plane. 

More subtle and strong is the connection as we 
rise in the planes of being, for the vibrations which 
pass from one to another become more rapid. 
Thought travels more swiftly than light. Others 
are affected by our thoughts and desires as these 
vibrate along the invisible threads of the vast web 



98 BROTHEJRHOOD. 

Stretching around the globe and binding together 
all mankind. The company of evil-minded peo- 
ple produces a tendency to think as they do, 
whereas the society of the pure and noble sug- 
gests elevating thoughts. If we cherish only 
lofty ideals and kindly feelings, our part of the 
human web is lifted, and while those nearest to 
us feel it the most, yet the impulse of the up- 
ward trend reaches to the uttermost limits. Har- 
boring evil thoughts and unkind feelings, and 
living base lives, give a downward pull to the 
web which affects all, but especially those nearest 
to us. 

Brotherhood is a fact in nature w^hich may not 
be ignored without self injury, whether we are 
conscious of it or not, or whether we live in 
accordance with it or fail so to do. I^aws of life 
are laws of harmony ; they are their own aven- 
gers, bringing readjustment with exact justice, so 
that every avenging angel is a personified repre- 
sentative of this reaction and readjustment. 

While brotherhood is a great truth, the illu- 
vsion of separateness exists in the mind, leading 
many to seek what they ignorantly consider to 
be to their personal advantage, regardless of 
others' welfare ; but such actions harm their 
performers as well as all humanity. In such 
case, man forgets his oneness in the great I^ife, 
the memory being clouded by materialistic sur- 
roundings, and he bases his motive for action 
upon this seeming separateness of personalities ; 
yet in reality the One lyife binds all together, for 
the permanent part of man is not the changing 



UNIVBRSAI. BROTHKRHOOD 99 

body but the inner soul, the spark of the great 
flame. 

The cr5dng need of the world is that all should 
recognize that the}^ are indissolubl}^ linked to- 
gether, and that none can help or injure another 
without doing as much for himself. There 
should be a determined movement to act in ac- 
cordance with Brotherhood and weld it into our 
institutions, social, national and political ; not 
merely as a tlieorj^, but appljdng it as a practical 
remedy for suffering. Acceptance of the fact of 
brotherhood does not imply that perfection has 
been attained, but that continued effort vShould 
be made to bring about its achievement. Each 
person realizes by his own lapses from the right 
path how difficult is this attainment ; but con- 
tinued effort will wnn, for self- conquest and 
altruism are the aim of Universal Brotherhood. 

The Song of Life is heard by those who can 
attune themselves to the harmony of the One 
Life, which may be awakened in every heart. 

QUESTIONS ON CHAPTER XI. 

1. Is Brotherhood a law and a fact in nature ? 
Give reasons. 

2. Describe the method and result of coopera- 
tion in the lower kingdoms. 

3. How does cooperation among human beings 
differ from its practice in the lower kingdoms ? 

4. How does the popular conception of God 
coincide with that of Brotherhood ? 

5. Wh"it is real pra3^er ? 

6. Are selfish petitions answered? Give rea- 
sons. 



lOO BROTHERHOOD. 

7. How is the power to pray acquired ? 

8. Is the practice of human brotherhood in 
accord with divine law ? Explain. 

9. What would be the effect in the world if 
brotherhood were practised ? 

10. What is sin ? 

11. Show how helpfulness assists progress. 

12. Give an abstract definition of brotherhood. 

13. Is competition in accord with brotherhood ? 

14. What is the eifect of breaking this law? 

15. Illustrate by every-day events. 

16. Explain how we can best help ourselves. 

17. Define duty. 

18. Why must we work for ourselves? 

19. What is the difference between brotherhood 
and selfishness, as regards working for our- 
selves ? 

20. How are mankind bound together on the 
physical plane? 

2 1 . Describe the effect our bodily particles have 
on others. 

22. What effect have our thoughts and desires 
upon others ? 

23. Explain how it is they affect others. 

24. What is an avenging angel ? 

25. Why are people selfish ? 

26. What does a selfish person forget ? 

27. What is most needed in the world to-day? 

28. How do we realize the difficulty of being 
brotherly ? 

29. What is the ' ' Song of Eife " ? 

30. How can it be heard ? 



CHAPTER XII. 

THE BASIS OF MORALS. 

"Ye are not bound! the soul of things is sweet, 

The heart of being is celestial rest ; 
Stronger than woe is will : that which was good 

Doth pass to better — best." — Sir Edwin Arnold. 

" The Kingdom of Heaven is within yon." —Jesus. 

" Moral philosophy, moralitj', ethics, casuistry, 
natural law, mean all the same thing, namely, that 
science which teaches men their duty and the rea- 
sons of it." — Palcy. 

The moral or ethical law is summed up in the 
practice of brotherhood, or helpfulness toward all 
beings. 

The previous lessons have traced the basis of 
morals step by step, vShowing that Nature herself 
provides the foundation for right conduct, and 
that we have but to follow the path pursued by 
Nature to become highl}^ moral beings. 

The moral law is not an arbitrar}^ arrangement 
subject to the caprice of kings or priests, or 
changing from age to age ; neither is it based 
upon vSpecial revelation by any being, but is im- 
planted in the unchangeable foundations of 
nature, and can be clearl}^ traced and discerned 
by all who will use their spiritual understand- 
ing. 

Study of the world's religions shows that 
Krishna, Laotze, Zoroaster, Buddha, Jesus, Paul 
and other great prophets, promulgated the self- 
same moral laws. Each of these Saviours revived 
in man a knowledge of the operations of the One 



I02 BROTHKRHOOD. 

lyife, which had been forgotten, leading him to 
the recognition of his spiritual nature, which alone 
brings the sense of duty. Some religious bodies 
have claimed that this knowledge was revealed 
only to their particular prophet or founder, and 
was unknown before such revelation ; but the 
facts of history and of nature contradict such a 
petty conceit, for the moral law is founded upon 
the laws of nature, and is ever the same, and 
man's dutj^ does not vary from age to age. 

The foregoing chapters have pointed out 
Nature's methods of operation, and her laws. 
We began by dwelling upon the One lyife, which 
is variously described as the great force or 
energy, the cause' of evolution, the Deity, the 
soul of the world. It is the One, boundless, in- 
finite, eternal spirit of the world, the source of 
the moral law, from which all things proceed and 
to which they periodically return. The One 
lyife is divided into innumerable " lives," each a 
soul in itself, whose relations are governed by 
the law of brotherhood, or helpfulness one to 
another. The existence of all things, from the 
rock to man, is due to the operation of this 
law. 

It is thus at the very heart of nature, in the 
cooperation of the " lives," that we discern the 
law of brotherhood. Upon this mutual helpful- 
ness of the ' * lives ' ' is founded the real basis of 
morals. The ' ' lives ' ' are the types from which 
all things proceed, and the " life " in man con- 
stitutes the soul, his immortal permanent prin- 
ciple. 



THE BASIS OF MORAI^. I03 

Next we studied " growth," which is from 
within outward. All ' ' lives ' ' proceed from the 
One Life, gradually covering themselves with 
denser garments, finally becoming embodied in 
this world. In the realm of the One Life is perfect 
harmony ; for nature displays every part assist- 
ing the others. Disharmony creeps in when the 
' ' lives ' ' have left their spiritual condition and 
have assumed material forms. If man obeyed 
the innermost promptings of his soul, peace 
would rule in his mental and physical surround- 
ings. The soul within each of us is ever trying 
to guide us by the moral law into the paths of 
brotherhood, but we fail to listen to its voice. 

Following this, we dwelt upon *' cyclic mani- 
festation," the universal law of alternate activity 
and rest, showing that rocks, plants, animals 
and men have their origin in the One Life, but 
periodically assume visible garments in this 
world, and then disappear for a time, to reappear 
again in other forms for renewed activities. 
Human beings are subject to this law ; they live 
in this world for a period, then discarding their 
bodies they rest awhile, but return here to 
other bodies. The analogy of nature thus proves 
the immortality of man's soul. 

Intimately connected with Reincarnation is the 
* ' law of action, ' ' or Karma ; that every action 
has its effect, and that nothing happens without 
a cause. This law accounts for the great dis- 
crepancies in the conditions into which people are 
born. By coupling Karma with Reincarnation, 
we perceive absolute justice working along 



I04 BROTHERHOOD. 

from life to life, bringing to each the exact 
deserts, good or bad, of former lives. We create 
our own conditions from life to life, and not 
even death relieves us of the results of actions, 
for they will return in future lives. 

The basis of ethics is firmly established when 
the laws of Karma and Reincarnation are 
grasped, for man's responsibility becomes to him 
a patent fact. He will apprehend that absolute 
justice reigns — for nature knows no favoritism — 
and that all must reap what they have sown. If 
the law of the One lyife be followed, harmony 
and peace will be our lot ; but if we violate that 
law, injuring others by the practice of selfish- 
ness, rigid iUvStice will bring suffering. 

The following chapters dealt with incidental 
subjects ; that " progress " is the rule of nature, 
the outer world existing as a schoolhouse for the 
*' lives," which enter forms to gather experience 
and store it in their eternal essence. Thus pro- 
gress continues perpetually by the accumulation 
of experience. This applies equall}^ to man. 
whose storehouse is the immortal soul. 

' ' Duality ' ' was touched upon to explain the 
" pairs of opposites " in nature, arising from the 
operations of the mind, which compares and con- 
trasts ideas and objects. Everything seems to 
us to possess dual attributes ; but beneath is 
Unity, the object of our search. This duality 
shows life as separate from the plant and animal, 
the inner force distinct from its outer covering, 
and also the vSoul of man as separate from his 
body. The spiritual and physical natures of man 



THE BASIS OF MORALS. IO5 

are apt to be opposed to each other, but the 
moral law would lead us to control the lower, 
blending it with the spiritual, by obeying the 
law of the One Life. 

The ' ' sevenfold manifestation ' ' in nature and 
man was treated, giving a close analysis of the 
seven planes of this world and the seven prin- 
ciples in man, and showing how man is con- 
nected with nature by these seven ties. We 
traced the spiritual and material, the permanent 
and temporar}^ elements of man. The individual 
soul in each person, the Christos, that which is 
immortal and reincarnates from life to life, is 
part of the universal soul, or God, as the Son 
proceeds from the Father. The four temporary 
constituents of man, from the animal desires to 
the physical body, serve as a clothing or vehicle 
to enable the Christos to operate in this world, 
and to become b}' this association the Saviour of 
the "lives," raising them to its own divine 
state. 

The ' ' connecting ra}' ' ' is the reasoning brain- 
mind, which forms the bridge between the 
Christos and its temporar}' vehicle. Progress 
depends upon our power to control the mind. 
The animal nature suggests the gratification of 
bodily desires, which leads to the attachment of 
the mind to sensual and selfish habits. The 
mind thus becomes the real battle-field, "for 
w^hat a man thinketh, that he becomes." Efforts 
at self-reform must be backed by a sound philoso- 
ph}^ from which the mind can find no escape. 
The basis of ethics or morals must indeed be 



I06 BROTHERHOOD. 

immovable to convince us of the necessity of re- 
fraining from over-indulgence in those things 
which gratify and are pleasant to the animal na- 
ture ; for if the mind can find one small loop- 
hole for evasion, it will be readily seized. 

Finally, we considered Universal Brotherhood 
as the practice of the highest ethics and morals. 
As the " lives " are parts of the One I^ife, mut- 
ually interdependent and necessary to one 
another, so are human beings inseparably^ con- 
nected. Forgetfulness of this great fact is the cause 
of strife and suffering in the world. If human 
beings learned the lesson of the One lyife and 
the ' ' lives," and, instead of competing to get the 
better of their neighbors, were to render help to 
those needing it, the harmony of the One Life 
would reign upon earth. 

Study of the laws of Karma and Reincarna- 
tion convinces the unprejudiced mind that jus- 
tice rules, and that the only way of escape from 
these present conditions is to apply the law of 
brotherhood to our associations ; for while man, 
misled by selfish ambition, vanity or greed, vio- 
lates the great law of nature, there can be no 
other outcome than strife and misery. 

To recapitulate the foregoing very concisely : 

The One Life, the one creative force of nature, 
all-pervading and eternal, is divided into innu- 
merable ' * lives. ' ' These are ever cooperating 
with one another, and by growth from within 
outward form the varied objects in this world. 

The "lives," through cyclic manifestation, are 
constantly growing forms and casting them off, 



THE BASIS OF MORALS. I07 

guided by the law of action. Thus the}' are rc- 
embodied or reincarnated in mineral, vegetable, 
annual or human beings in exact accord with 
their own prior history. The purpose of these 
continued transformations is progress, and thus 
it is gained. 

Everything has an inner, eternal part, and an 
outer, temporary covering, which form the 
* ' duality ' ' in nature. The inner is divided for 
clearer comprehension into three aspects or prin- 
ciples, and the outer into four, making the seven 
fold manifestation. In man the reasoning mincl 
is the connecting ray between his inner and 
outer principles, and forms the battle-field of his 
career, for he cannot progress permanently unless 
he voluntarily determine in his mind to follow 
the law of the One Life and the "lives," prac- 
tising universal brotherhood or helpfulness to- 
ward all beings. 

Ability in the individual to apply the moral 
law^ in daily life is man's most difficult attain- 
ment, but its acquirement is salvation in a true 
sense, for he is saved from the commission of 
sins whose result is suffering. Full application of 
the moral law involves being able to give up those 
things which the heart is set upon, wdienever 
they become obstacles in working for the general 
welfare. This renunciation applies not only to 
bodily appetites, but to objects of ambition and 
vanit}', and the seeking for place and power. It 
means the power to work for others at all times 
without an^^ thought of how we may be affected. 
It requires a life devoted to helpfulness in deeds, 



lo8 BROTHERHOOD. 

words and thoughts, accompanied by an entire 
renunciation of self when the good of others is 
involved, not caring whether our actions meet 
with praise or blame. 

Application of the moral law requires that we 
use the utmost energy and perseverance in the 
accomplishment of our duty to humanity ; that 
we possess unswerving patience, and power to 
forgive pensecutors and slanderers ; that un- 
bounded compassion and helpfulness be exercised 
toward all beings. 

These lofty attainments of self-control and 
self-abnegation can only be reached by those who 
have learned that the spiritual nature is the real, 
that man is a soul. Enlightenment as to the 
One Ivife and the ' ' lives,' ' and the laws governing 
them, affords knowledge of the nature of the 
soul, the Christ within, as a living active prin- 
ciple, and gives faith in the existence within us 
of divine power and wisdom. 

' ' Faith is the covenant or engagement between 
man's divine part and his lesser self." It is an 
enormous power, capable of bringing about this 
great change in man's nature, and enabling him 
to ' ' remove mountains ' ' of selfishness ; but 
such faith must be founded on knowledge. 

QUESTIONS ON CHAPTER XII. 

1 . How can the moral law be summed up ? 

2. What provides the foundation for right 
conduct ? 

3. Why cannot human beings change the basis 
of the moral law ? 



THB BASIS OF MORALS. IO9 

4. What was the mission of the world's 
Saviours ? 

5 . In what respect are their teachings identical ? 

6. What leads to the performance of duty ? 

7. Why cannot any religious body rightfully 
claim to monopolize moral teachings ? 

8 . What bearing on morals has the ' ' One lyif e ' ' ? 

9. What bearing on morals have the ' ' lives ' ' ? 

10. Where do we discover the basis of the 
moral law^ ? 

1 1 . What bearing on morals has ' ' Growth ' ' ? 

12. What should man listen to and obey ? 

13. What bearing on morals has " Cyclic mani- 
festation ' ' ? 

14. How does the analogy of nature point to an 
immortal soul in man ? 

15. What bearing on morals has the " I^aw of 
action ' ' ? 

16. Explain why acceptance of Karma and Re- 
incarnation gives a firm basis for morals. 

17. What bearing on morals has " Progress " ? 

18. How does man progress ? Does he lose at 
death the experience of the last life? 

19. What bearing on morals has " Duality" ? 

20. How does duality in man's nature cease ? 

2 1 . What bearing on morals has the ' ' Seven- 
fold manifestation ' ' ? 

22. What is permanent and what impermanent 
in man ? 

23. Why should the objects of the spiritual 
man be paramount ? 

24. What bearing on morals has the " Connect- 
ing ray " ? 



no BROTHKRHOOD. 

25. Why is a sound philosophy essential? 

26. What bearing on morals has " Universal 
brotherhood " ? 

27. What is the lesson of the One I^ife and the 
''lives"? • 

28. How can we obtain exemption from misery ? 

29. What is man's hardest task? 

30. Explain the real meaning of " Salvation/' 

31. What is necessary for man to gain perfec- 
tion ? 

32 . Upon what must faith be founded ? 

33. Explain how we can reach the highest goal 
through faith. 



" A healthy soul stands united with the just and~th"e true, as the 
magnet arranges itseh with the pole; so that he stands to all be- 
holders like a transparent object betwixt them and the sun, and 
whuso journeys towards the sun, journeys towards that person. He 
is thus the medium of the highest influence to all who are not on the 
same level. Thus men of character are the conscience of the society 
to which they belong." 

" The lesson is forcibly taught by these observations that our life 
might be much easier and simpler than we make it ; that the world 
might be a happier place than it is ; that there is no need of struggles, 
convulsions, and despairs, of the wringing of the hands and the gn. ash- 
ing of the teeth ; that we miscreate our own evils. We interfere with 
the optimism of nature ; for whenever we get this vantage-ground of 
the past, or of a wiser mind in the present, we are able to discern 
that we are begirt with laws which execute themselves."— ^'w^r^-oM. 

" But stay, Disciple . . . yet one word. Canst thou destroy divine 
Compassion? Compassion is no attribute. It is the law of Laws — 
Eternal Harmony, Alaya's Self ; a shoreless universal essence, the 
light of everlasting right, and fitness of all things, the law of Love 
Eternal." 

" The more thou dost become at one with it , thv being melted in its 
Being, the more thy soul unites with that which is, the more thou 
wilt become Compassion Absolute."— I 'oice of the Silence. 



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